The Chosen One, Book IV: Vengeance
by JL01
Summary: Not long after their son Ethan begun his Pokémon journey, Ash and Misty are heartbroken as they hear terrible news. The subsequent consequences will change Kanto and Johto forever.
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER: **Pokémon is the property of Satoshi Tajiri and its owners. No copyright infringements intended.

**Story Description:** Not long after their son Ethan begun his Pokémon journey, Ash and Misty are heartbroken as they hear terrible news. The subsequent consequences will change Kanto and Johto forever. A dark fic.

**Character Ages****:** Ash & Misty, Gary (30), Brock & Sabrina (35), Jessie & James (40), May & Drew (28), Dawn (26), Julia (33), Delia & Chris Ketchum (49), Professor Oak (70).

This is the **fourth **book of a total of **six **in this series.

* * *

><p><strong>The Chosen One <strong>

**Book IV **

**Vengeance**

**(3****rd****-person narrative)**

"Goodnight! Rest up, and I hope you have a wonderful journey!" Nurse Joy cheerfully said to Ethan from the doorway of the bedroom in the Viridian City Pokémon Center. Ethan lay on the bed, looking blankly at the ceiling as the moonlight shone through the nearby window.

"…thank you," Ethan gave a simple reply. Despite all of Ash and Misty's attempts to restore happiness in the life of their son, their efforts proved to be futile in the end. Their only hope was that he would discover real happiness for himself in a Pokémon journey of his own.

Nurse Joy simply smiled again, and then left to continue her own duties. She was, of course, unaware of Ethan's cold personality, only believing him to be exhausted from his journey. Along the way, Ethan had already caught a Rattata, Pidgey and Spearow; a feat that was beyond Gary, let alone his own father. All of his Pokémon were currently in their Pokéballs, being tended to by Nurse Joy in the treatment room.

In truth, Ethan secretly despised all of his Pokémon, deeming them to be pathetically weak in his own eyes. He longed for domination, for power. The power he once knew when he and his mother, Misty, were captives in Julius' lair, over eight years ago.

"But then, I was not a captive…I was a god in my own right…" he whispered to himself, looking out the window at the bright full moon. "…then _father _had to come and get me and mother out of there…"

Suddenly, he saw a strange light shining through the window. He sat up from his bed to have a better view, but then, without any warning, the light intensified tenfold, blinding him as he raised his hands to cover his eyes. Just when he thought it couldn't get any brighter, the light died down in an instant, replaced by a darkness which was blacker than night, with dark violet shrouds which gathered around the Center like fog.

Crawling with fear towards the window, Ethan kept his head down until he reached the windowsill. Cautiously peeping his head up to have a closer look at what was going on, he was shocked to see that the haze had disappeared altogether, and things were suspiciously back to normal. He let out a sigh and closed his eyes, turning to return to his pillow. But then, his eyes shot wide in horror as a strong hand came over his mouth. He was pulled violently out the window, losing consciousness as a shadowy figure loomed over him…

* * *

><p><strong>(In the morning)<strong>

**(Ash's POV)**

"Gaah…what time is it?" I yawned, stretching my arms up as I felt Misty stirring beside me. The weather was fine outside, with a few clouds dotting the sky. Rays of sunshine fell upon us, making Misty's hair shine beautifully like a jewel. Despite both of us now being 30, Misty didn't look a day older than on our wedding day, ten years ago.

"Pika?" Pikachu's ear jolted upwards from the foot of the bed. Marill also woke up and yawned beside him.

"Mmm…is it morning already?" Misty said softly with a smile, laying her cheek and hand on my chest as she kept her eyes closed.

"Come on, Mist. We should get up now," I kissed her on the cheek, to which she smiled and chuckled.

"But I'm still tired…" she jokingly complained.

"How old are you again, Mist?" I poked her gently on the cheek with a grin.

"Coming from _you_, Ash Ketchum," she answered back, pulling my hand towards her lips and kissing it.

"Hehehe," I chuckled, drawing her into a warm hug as we locked lips. "Let's go now, Mist!" I exclaimed, scooping her up in my arms. Misty let out a soft gasp of surprise, then giggled as I then lowered her down on her feet.

"Honey, can you go downstairs and take some food out of the fridge? I'll go wake Claire," Misty said.

"Sure thing, Mist," I nodded. We kissed each other on the cheek as Misty and Marill went into Claire's room, where our daughter was still peacefully asleep, and Pikachu and I went downstairs into the kitchen.

Misty came down the stairs with Claire, now eight years old, into the kitchen where I was cooking some eggs for breakfast. She took the box of cereal and milk that I took out and placed on the counter and poured three bowls. Pikachu and Marill, seeing the small packets of ketchup and sweet mustard I placed on the counter, gleefully leapt up and took them in hand, suckling on the contents.

"You _really _shouldn't give them that stuff in the morning, Ash," Misty chuckled. "It's not good breakfast food."

"You know I'm not that creative with cooking, Mist," I grinned, taking the eggs off the frying pan and putting them onto plates.

"Ash, there's a difference between unoriginality and stupidity," she poked her tongue out at me, and I returned the gesture.

"Geez! You two act like kids!" Claire sighed. As much as we were slightly annoyed at her statement and the fact that it was coming from our eight year-old child, Misty and I both knew it was true.

"Blame your father, sweetheart," Misty giggled.

"Sure, blame everything on me, Mist," I kidded, coming with the plates and sitting at the table. "Man, I'm bored. Let's see what's on TV. Maybe there's a match going on in a league somewhere," I said, handling the remote.

"Honey, when will you ever get tired of watching battles? Seriously, it's all you ever watch!" Misty exhaled.

"Hey, it's fun, ok?" I defended myself with a smile as I pressed the power button. "Hopefully something good will be…"

I dropped both the remote and my spoon at the same time, horrified and shocked by the sight on the TV. It couldn't be…

"Ash, what's wrong? What are you watch…ing," Misty trailed off as she turned her head from me towards the TV.

"We bring you breaking news from the Viridian City Pokémon Center," a female news reporter said as she stood in front of the camera, a smoking pile of debris behind her. "It appears that a fire has destroyed the entire building, down to its very frames. Authorities are still trying to figure out exactly _when_ and _how _the fire was started. The local Nurse Joy is currently being treated for smoke inhalation in the local general hospital, and is in a stable condition. According to the working staff, all personnel employed in the center have been safely evacuated and accounted for. However, they say that a lone beginner trainer who was spending the night in the center has gone missing without a trace. Staff members say that the male trainer from Pallet Town disappeared from his room, at approximately the same time the fire started. Police are still trying to determine the identity of the trainer, and his current whereabouts. We will provide continuous coverage on the scene over the course of the day. I'm Jill Hayden, and you're watching PokéWorld News."

I shook my head weakly in disbelief, turning off the TV. Claire fearfully spun her head towards us, looking at us with eyes of desperation.

"My baby!" Misty cried, jolting out of her chair. "My baby! We have to go there right _now_!"

"How could this happen?" I panicked, following suit and running up the stairs after her, hardly having gotten through breakfast.

"Mom! Dad! I'm coming, too!" Claire called out to us as she quickly made her way to the stairs.

"No! You can't Claire! You have to stay here, with Pikachu and Marill!" Misty pleaded from the top of the staircase.

"Ethan's my _brother_, mom! I'm not going to stay around here doing nothing while he's missing! I'm old enough now! _Trust _me!" Claire shouted. A few seconds later, Misty reluctantly nodded with tears in her eyes, and we all went and changed clothes like lightning. Our Pokéballs in hand, we came down the stairs just as fast as we ascended them.

"Charizard! Pidgeot!" I released my two Pokémon after we left the house. They stretched out their wings and let out a bellow upon coming out of their Pokéballs. Misty held onto Claire as the two of them mounted Pidgeot, and I got on Charizard.

"Please, you two, fly as quickly as you can to the Viridian City Pokémon Center! Ethan's gone missing!" Misty cried to them. They immediately took off, soaring through the skies towards the scene of disaster.

* * *

><p>"Stop! Don't come any closer, any of you!" an Officer Jenny shouted to the mob of media personnel who were crowding in front of the police barriers and lines that had been established around the Pokémon Center. We touched down several feet away from the crowd and ran towards the scene after I recalled Charizard and Pidgeot back into their Pokéballs.<p>

"Claire, honey, make sure to keep hold of mommy's hand, okay?" Misty looked down at her as she took hold of her hand. Claire nodded, and we weaved through the crowd of reporters until we were face to face with Officer Jenny.

"_Please_, don't make me repeat myself again! Stay back, _away_ from the lines!" Jenny yelled, initially mistaking us for more reporters until she saw our faces. "Mis…Mister Ketchum? What are _you _doing here?"

"Jenny! You have to listen to us!" Misty cried. "Our son was in the Pokémon Center before the fire started! He's gone, and he hasn't contacted us at home! Please, you have to help us!"

"Are you sure? How do you know it was your son who's gone missing? How do you know that it wasn't another trainer, and your son simply spent the night in another location?" Jenny asked.

"Please…you have to listen to us…" Misty started to shed tears. "We know. Somehow, we know. It's our son, Ethan…"

"Alright," Jenny nodded after a brief moment of thought, lifting the police line upwards so that we could get through. "Come in."

She led us into the debris, stopping at what appeared to be the burnt frames of a bed. Upon seeing what remained of it, Misty murmured in shock. "Is this…"

"I'm afraid so," Jenny sighed. "We were told that he was in this room when the fire started. However, we weren't able to find any trace of human remains. We're still hopeful that he escaped alive, maybe through climbing out a window."

"Are there search teams looking for him right now?" I asked.

"Yes," Jenny confirmed. "We've sent out three search squads to locate him. Unfortunately, we've been unsuccessful so far."

"…thank you, Jenny…" I sighed downwards. "…you did your best."

"Mr. Ketchum…" she replied softly, placing her hand over her mouth as she didn't know what to say, tears of sympathy forming in her eyes.

"We've gotta start looking for him, Ash!" Misty panicked, gripping me on the arm. "Come on! Call out Charizard and Pidgeot again!"

Although I knew in my heart that we would be unsuccessful, I silently agreed to her request. Exchanging sullen looks with Jenny, we exited through the lines on the left side, away from the media who were still causing a raucous noise at the front. I called out Charizard and Pidgeot again, and we were just about to mount on them before…

"Ash! Misty!" Mom's voice suddenly came from up in the air. Dad's Salamence swooped down and landed in front of us, as we looked on in surprise.

"Mom? Dad? What are you…" I trailed off.

"We came here as soon as we heard the news, an hour ago," Dad explained. "But when we arrived, we were told that he was nowhere in sight, and that search teams had been sent out a short time after the fire was finally extinguished. We flew around for about two hours looking for him, but we just couldn't see him anywhere."

"You don't believe he's been killed in the fire, either?" Misty asked them.

"No," Mom shook her head, then spoke softly with as much grief as Misty. "I _know _he's alive, somewhere. We just couldn't find him. And…" she sighed, reaching down to her waist, from which she took out a belt which held four Pokéballs, "…these were Ethan's. I thought you would…want to keep them."

Misty took the pokeballs from Mom's hands, her body trembling with overwhelming worry as she spoke again. "We'll go together! We'll definitely find him if we all cover more space!" she insisted with a hope in her eyes that refused to die.

"I'm afraid that won't work, Misty, dear," Dad said. "Delia and I have already flown for miles, covering just about every area where Ethan could be, in a wide radius. None of us will find him in this way."

"But…but you can't just give up like this! You _can't_!" Misty screamed. "My baby's in danger! He's your _grandson_! How could you ever possibly just abandon him like this?"

"Mist, dad is right," I tried to comfort her, holding her cheeks gently with my hands and drawing her face up so that we were looking at each other's eyes. "He and mom have already done as much as they could. Searching right now won't allow us to find him. As much as I'd like to find him myself, I know that we won't. Let the search teams do their job, Mist. They'll find him, eventually. I _know _they will."

Misty looked solely at me with tearful eyes, the two cerulean orbs being drowned in a sea of sorrow. Then, squinting and looking away, she jerked her head out of my hands and did something she had never done since the day we first met.

She slapped me.

"Misty! Wait!" Mom cried out after her as she rushed to Pidgeot. Not heeding a word Mom said, Misty took off with Pidgeot, who look down at us from the sky in confusion. Marill cried out after her trainer, but Misty didn't look back for a second.

Too shocked to do anything, I looked blankly forward at the shambling rubble of the Pokémon Center. Misty had never hit me before with such anger. For the first time in my life, I felt utterly helpless to do anything.

"Dad? Why is mom going all by herself?" Claire asked, tugging at my sleeve. I gave no reply. "…Dad?"

"She's…" Mom crouched down after seeing that I was in no emotional condition to answer Claire's question, gently rubbing the sides of her arms. "She's gone to find your brother, sweetheart. She'll be back soon."

"Why aren't you going after her, dad? Mom could get lost out there!" Claire said to me with slight frustration in her voice.

"…your mom's the toughest person I know, Claire. She can take care of herself. She needs to be alone right now," I replied.

"Then…what are we gonna do, dad? Are we just going to wait here until she comes back?"

"…yes, Claire. We'll wait until she comes back," I sighed, recalling Charizard back into his Pokéball and sitting on the ground, sinking my head onto my knees. A few very tedious hours later, Misty finally returned broken hearted. Mom embraced her in a warm hug, whispering into her ear that everything was going to be fine. But in our hearts, we all knew that it wasn't true.

Far from it.

* * *

><p>Feeling as if our life had been shattered, Misty, Claire and I returned to our house in the Seafoam Islands after Misty refused to go to Pallet Town to talk about what had just happened with Mom and Dad. None of us spoke a word during the flight, nor after we entered the house. We all collapsed onto the sofa, Misty and Claire hugging onto one another while Pikachu and Marill were tugging at me in an unsuccessful bid to cheer me up. The silence was only broken when a message tone sounded from our video phone, grabbing our attention.<p>

Walking over to it without muttering a word, I saw that there were two messages, one from Brock and Sabrina, and the other from Jessie and James. Too disheartened, and also due to the fact that I knew what the contents would be, I closed my eyes and began to move away. Another message tone sounded as I turned my back: more came in, this time from May and Dawn. And yet, I declined to look at them, instead lethargically returning to the sofa.

Seeing that Misty's tears still hadn't ceased, I gently placed my hand on her shoulder and whispered to her. "Misty…I…"

She shrugged my hand away with her arm, never letting go of Claire for one second. She glumly stared at Ethan's Pokébelt which lay on the table, the expression on her face more than showing that her heart felt like it was being pierced by a thousand knives. Not being able to take it anymore, she put Claire by herself on the sofa and rushed upstairs, the sound of the slamming of our bedroom door so loud that it could have been mistaken as that of the kitchen door which was barely a few feet away.

I fell onto my knees on the carpet, tears falling down my face as I clenched my fist against the floor. Pikachu and Marill remained on the sofa, looking down in dejection.

"Dad…it wasn't your fault…" Claire murmured to me, putting her hand on my arm as she crouched down next to me.

"Why…? Why couldn't I have just put off his journey for just a little longer? Not even one day?" I cried.

"There was no way you could've seen it coming, dad. _Or _prevent it, for that matter."

"I _could _have," I bit my lip. "I _could _have, and I _should _have. He's my son, and I failed him. None of this was your mother's fault…if only I could've _done _something about it…" I said as my thoughts went back to the tragic accident out at sea barely a week after Ethan was born, ten years ago.

"Trust me, dad, there isn't anything you could've done," Claire squeezed my arm. "But please, promise me you'll talk to mom? She's more upset than I've ever seen. I'm worried about her…"

Finally, her words having broken through to me, I smiled and hugged Claire warmly, then got up and went up the stairs. Claire, Pikachu and Marill followed behind me, then stayed outside me and Misty's bedroom as I entered, taking a deep breath beforehand.

As I gazed upon Misty weeping face-down into her pillow in her most dejected state, I was lost for words, feeling shivering sensation rippling through my entire body. I had never seen her so sad before in all the years I had known and loved her for.

She slowly turned her head to face me, a dread-inspiring glare firing at me from her eyes. She gripped her pillow with such force that her nail marks were clearly visible on its surface as she threw it at me, hitting me on the chest. _"Get out!"_

"Mist…please…What happened to Ethan was tragic and unbearable for me as much as it clearly is for you, and I'm not asking you to forgive me for letting him begin his journey too soon," I pleaded after she had spun her head back forward and was now crying into her hands. "I just…I don't know what to say…I'm sorry, Mist. Sorry for putting you through all this. I'm sorry for not listening to you when you kept on asking me whether Ethan could begin his journey in another few months. I'm sorry for…_for everything…_"

After hearing my words, Misty slowly raised her face from her hands, looking dully at the headboard of the bed. She took several deep breaths in and out, then slowly turned her tear-stained face in my direction. She looked at me with eyes that were full of sorrow, yet told me that in her heart, she forgave me. She moved her hand weakly towards me with a weak whisper.

"Ash…"

"…Misty…" I whispered back, approaching and sitting on the bed beside her.

"…_hold me…_"

Immediately, I embraced her tightly with both arms as she buried her face in my chest. I laid gentle kisses on her head, stroking her hair and rubbing her back to comfort her.

"Forgive me, Ash," she murmured after a while.

"There's nothing you should be sorry to me about, Mist. It's me who should be apologizing to _you_," I told her.

"No. You did absolutely nothing wrong, Ash. The things that happened were out of your control. I accept that, now. I guess the reason why I was so mad at you is…" she went silent for a moment, pondering in thought. "…is because I needed to blame someone. Something. _Anything_, for what happened to Ethan. But I can't stay mad at you, Ash, and I could _never _come to hate you. You've always been there for me when I needed you, yet I thought I could vent my frustration by doing what I did. Will you forgive me, Ash?"

"Like I said," I smiled, stroking her cheek as we looked into each other's eyes. "There's nothing you should be sorry to me about."

"I love you…" Misty breathed against my shoulder.

"I love you too, Mist. And I promise you; we'll get him back together. _I promise_," I held her in my arms.

* * *

><p><strong>(Meanwhile, in an unknown location, somewhere in Kanto…)<strong>

**(3****rd****-person narrative)**

"_What…? Where…am I_?" Ethan groaned as he rubbed his sore temple, shaking his head to regain his senses. Looking around, he saw that he was in some kind of chamber made of steel, with absolutely no lights inside it except for the one which shone directly upon him from above, forming a circle of light around him.

"So, you have finally awoken…" a reverberating and menacing voice chuckled evilly from the dark, causing Ethan to look around him nervously.

"That voice…so familiar, and yet…I've forgotten," Ethan remarked after a moment of searching, his once-frantic heartbeat now settling down very slowly as memories slowly crept back into his mind.

"Naïve, foolish boy…have you forgotten your master so easily?" the voice spoke again, and a dark figure approached Ethan with footsteps which were almost inaudible, yet sounded deep and terrible with every step taken. The man – or _being_, more like – stopped in front of Ethan, his face concealed underneath a black hood. But Ethan could see his eyes: two orbs of evil which looked down upon him with a cold fire.

The fear somehow escaping from him, Ethan slowly stood upright, walking slowly towards the man who stood over him. All at once, through the dark powers which remained dormant within him ever since he and his mother were rescued by his father eight years ago, he immediately recognized the one who was standing before him.

"…Master?"

The figure stepped forward one step, coming under the light which revealed a devilish smile. "Yes…it is I…_Apothes_."

**(End of Chapter 1)**

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><p><strong>AN:**It's good to have finally reached this Book, as I had been waiting to get to it ever since starting this series. Like Book III, I haven't written up a full plot outline for me to follow like I did for Books I and II, but I'm confident I'll be able to keep things together and make the story run smoothly.

I'm going to write up the next chapter of my Yugioh Abridged fic, as many people have been waiting on it. You can stay updated on how both stories are coming along, by looking at the very bottom of my profile where I post updates on story progress.

Please leave your reviews. : )


	2. Wounded Hearts

**Chapter 2**

**Wounded Hearts**

**(Ash's POV)**

A week had gone by, and there had been absolutely no news of Ethan at all. Not one trace. Not as much as a clue regarding his whereabouts. Nothing.

Although Misty and I didn't want to lose faith, we could feel it in our hearts that it was rapidly disappearing with every second gone by. We were held together emotionally only through the support of our friends, and the support we gave each other. Every single night since Ethan's disappearance, Misty and I held tightly onto each other, hardly able to get a decent night's sleep due to our intense anxiety.

Not long after the terrible incident, letters came flooding into our mailbox from many of our friends and family. Misty wept as she held Violet and Lily's letter in her hands. Among the countless letters, we also received messages of condolences from Brock and Sabrina, Jessie, James, Meowth and Julia, as well as May, Drew and Dawn. And of course, Dawn was the one who could empathize the most with our situation, given that she had lost Paul for what was now more than eight years. She hadn't done as much as to meet a new man since she lost him, despite all of her mother's pleas. Her heart was forever with Paul, and she intended to live out the rest of her life in his memory, raising their child, Henry, alone with the help of her mother.

To help us get through this difficult time, Mom had invited us over to Pallet Town, and also called Brock and Sabrina, as well as Jessie, James, Meowth and Julia. We were all gathered in the lounge room in Professor Oak's lab, along with Gary, Amanda, Tracey and Daisy. The children were occupied as they played with each other. Alex, Jenna, Demetry and Belle took extra care for Claire, who had lost her brother, as well as their four younger peers: Sylvia and Jason, Gary and Amanda's children, and Danielle and Sarah, Tracey and Daisy's two daughters.

"Don't worry, Claire. I'm sure your brother's gonna be all right," Jenna said as she hugged Claire, whom she regarded as her own sister, to comfort her.

"Thanks, Jenna," Claire smiled optimistically as she closed her eyes, returning the embrace. But then, her eyes opened again eerily as she felt something brush against her skin. "Huh? What the…"

"Teeheehee!" Alex mischievously chuckled. The young boy was busy once again at his telekinetic pranks, this time causing his twin sister's hair to levitate and tickle Claire's face in the process.

"Alex, cut it out!" Sabrina whined at her son. "He does that all the time…"

"Hehehe, sorry, Jenna. But you gotta keep hoping, y'know," Alex ceased his telekinesis and smiled at her. "He might be safe and sound. Who knows?"

"If he was safe…he would have come back by now…" Misty sank her face into her hands. I immediately moved to comfort her, rubbing her back softly with my left hand while squeezing her hands with my right.

"He's right, darling. You can't lose hope," Mom told her. "I know, because…well…" she murmured, turning her head to face Dad, who had been a captive of Julius for over twenty years, before we had freed him from his confinement.

"But…this is _Ethan_ we're talking about. He's only a boy!" Misty sobbed.

"Sis, you've gotta keep yourself composed about this," Daisy tried to get through to her younger sister. "It won't help Ethan if you continue to assume the worst about what could've happened to him."

"I…I guess you're right, Dais," Misty lifted her head up again. "I can't lose hope now, can I?"

"Just remember that you're not the only one who's experienced a loss like this, Misty," Julia added. "I thought that I'd never find my family again while I continued to work for Team Rocket and Giovanni, and look where I am today. I found my family after what felt like a lifetime of searching, and I couldn't be happier. If only…mom could be with us, still…" she trailed off in sorrow, receiving a sympathetic look from her sister, Jessie, before pulling herself together firmly again. "Just don't give up, Misty. You'll find him eventually if you keep on looking for him."

Misty smiled. "Thanks, all of you. You've always been there for me after the disaster occurred, yet…I didn't realize it." She then let out an apologetic sigh. "I let my anguish get the better of me. I'm sorry. Especially to _you_, mom. You tried to support me through this ever since we saw you in Viridian City, but…I shunned you, instead. Not only that, you supported me and cared for me as a daughter for so many years, and the way I reacted to what you said last week…_I'm sorry_…"

"It's all right, dear. I know you didn't mean it," Mom assured her with a smile of her own.

"We're always here for you, Misty. Don't forget that," Sabrina warmly said to her.

"I know, Sabs. Thank you," Misty beamed back. Her expression soon darkened again, however, as she looked over her shoulder at Claire, who was playing with the other children.

"Misty?" I said in concern, placing my hand on top of hers. I then looked over at Claire, and immediately knew what Misty was thinking about. "…You're worried that the same thing might happen to Claire, too, right?"

"…" Misty didn't make a sound, instead just nodding her head.

"Don't worry, Misty. I'm sure things will be fine for Claire," Brock assured her.

"How do you know that, Brock? How can you be sure?" Misty questioned him.

"I…can't say for sure," Brock conceded. "I guess it's just because that these things, well…they're extremely rare in occurrence." He then lit up again. "And besides, it's not like Claire's gonna start her journey on her own!"

"What do you mean?"

"She can go together with Alex and Jenna, when they're all ready," Sabrina smiled. "It's always safer to travel in groups, right?"

"That's a great idea, Sabrina," Jessie agreed. "Belle and Demetry could go, as well. They can all take care of each other."

"I…guess I never thought of that," Misty gave a small grin. "That makes me feel more at ease."

"I could always babysit them on their journey, if you want," Julia smirked while she had her arms crossed comfortably. "Come on, it's not like I have much else to do around our mansion." She then turned her head to her young nephew and niece. "You guys want me to take care of you when you start your own Pokémon journey?"

"Aunt Julia~~!" Belle and Demetry whined in unison as they were interrupted from their play, embarrassed at the thought of their aunt tagging along.

"So, Ash, have you and Misty decided what you'll do next?" Professor Oak asked. "These things may take a grueling amount of time, but you should keep at it, regardless."

I nodded. "It seems that searching around Viridian City and its outlying areas was fruitless, after all. And if Ethan traveled away from the fire on his own accord, he would've gone in the general direction of Pallet Town, and he would then have been found shortly after. As much as I've feared for it, and didn't want it to be true, it's time I admitted it – Ethan must have been kidnapped."

Brock agreed. "I think that's the most probably outcome, too. Regular search operations aren't going to help us from here on, even with the help of the Indigo Plateau. We should try something else."

"But what?" James questioned. "It's not like as if we're going to have much success going around every city in Kanto and asking, 'Hello. Have you by any chance seen this boy?'"

"Because of how long he's disappeared for, and the fact that we haven't heard a single word about him, it's likely that he's indeed been kidnapped, and being held somewhere," Dad said. "Because of your fame and reputation, son, we can be slightly more at ease, as his captors would probably want to keep him alive for other purposes. Nonetheless, we should hurry to find him soon."

Misty's face suddenly darkened with anxiety, drawing Mom's attention. "Misty, dear, what's wrong?"

"Mom, as much as I want to find Ethan and bring him home, I…" Misty exhaled. "I'm afraid of how he might react to…to…" She trailed off, looking down and placing her hand over her stomach.

"You're talking about the baby, right?" Gary asked.

"Yeah," Misty answered. "I'm going to have another child in around eight months' time, and…I'm afraid of how he might react to it. He was such a positive, happy boy until soon after Claire was born. After that, he must've thought we'd been neglecting him, which lead to…now. So I'm afraid. Afraid of what might happen once he finds out about this baby I'm having…"

"You're right to be afraid of that possibility, Misty, but there's really no other way for it," Daisy sighed. "You'll have to tell him about it sooner or later, after we find him."

"I…I guess so, Dais. When the time comes, I'll tell him," Misty nodded, then murmured almost inaudibly. _"…If we find him…_"

"But still, that leaves us with a massive problem," Amanda said. "Where exactly do we start looking?"

"Not only that, we've also got to deal with just how we're going to conduct our search," Julia added. "Conventional searches are highly likely to fail."

"And because of the fact that absolutely no-one got as much as a glimpse of him since the fire, that could only mean that he never came close to a major city or town," Tracey wondered. "But that doesn't make any sense! How could he have gone for a whole week without any supplies, when he surely would've lost all his belongings in the fire?"

"As much as Misty and I taught him some things about camping and the like to prepare him for his journey, nobody could go a full week with zero-supplies. He's _have _to resort to finding a town in that case, and we would've found him by now. That could only mean that…" I trailed off, finding it painful to admit the thought that lingered in my head. "…he's been kidnapped."

"First thing's first, Ash," Sabrina told me. "If we want to figure out just who did this, then we have to search for Ethan right away."

"We'll have better luck finding him if we all split up," Julia suggested to all of us, then spoke specifically to me and Misty. "You guys should start from scratch from the site of the fire, and then do your best to try and emulate where Ethan might have gone. You'll have better luck of find more traces now, seeing as all the facts have settled in and we can go about this search with a level head."

"I'm coming, too! I want to help!" Claire shot her hand up in the air.

"Us too!" the other children joined in.

"Now, now, I'm sure you all have the best of intentions, but this is serious business," Professor Oak told them. "You might be travelling for miles at a time, and the tasks that need to be carried out are very complicated indeed. It's best for you all to just leave this to your parents."

"Professor Oak is right, dear. You can stay with me and grandpa while your mom and dad look for your brother," Mom told Claire.

Claire sighed in disappointment, believing that she was old enough to be up to the task. "Okay…"

"I couldn't pick up Ethan's aura at all in Pewter City or its surrounding areas, but Brock and I will step up our search, nonetheless. I'll ask my dad and Tate to look for any clues in Saffron. We can leave Alex and Jenna with Brock's parents," Sabrina said. Brock nodded in agreement.

"I never thought that it'd come to such a big search, but ok," Daisy said. "I'll give Violet and Lily a call in Cerulean and ask them to start looking."

"I'll start searching in Celadon. It's a big place, but I'm sure I'll be able to pick up on something," Julia decided. "Then that leaves Fuchsia City and Lavender Town. Jessie, James and Meowth could cover either of them."

"Guys, that still leaves Cinnabar Island, doesn't it?" Tracey noted. "It might sound ridiculous to think that Ethan could have been taken all across the sea without us noticing it, but I think we should still treat it as a serious possibility."

"You're right, Tracey. We can't leave any locations unturned. We'll even have to search non-urban areas if we're going to have any luck," Brock sighed, taking in the difficulty of the task at hand.

"I can take care of Cinnabar Island," Gary volunteered. "It's real close to Pallet Town, and I could go over there on Dragonite and come back afterwards. There's not much ground to cover there."

"Trace, like, why don't _you _do anything or go anywhere? It's not like you have to spend all your time in the lab," Daisy pouted at her husband.

"Ahehehe…" Tracey rubbed the back of his head and laughed sheepishly. "I want to, but I think Professor Oak needs me to stick around."

"No, it's fine, Tracey. In fact, it'd probably be best if you go with Gary to Cinnabar Island. The more the better!" Professor Oak beamed.

"Ash, you must realize that even with all our combined efforts, we may not locate Ethan. Just remember that this is just the beginning in our search for him. Don't give up. With luck, we'll be able to find him," Sabrina said to me.

"You're right, Sabrina," I nodded. "Then let's just hope luck's on our side."

* * *

><p><strong>(Somewhere, in a hidden location in Johto)<strong>

**(3****rd****-person narrative)**

"Apothes…just what do you intend to do with this…_boy_?" Silver, seated with the Rocket Executives in a boardroom, asked the dark figure in front of him while shooting a cynical gaze at the young Ethan. Apothes had his hands placed on the shoulders of the son of his mortal enemy as he faced the others, smirking sinisterly as he looked down upon Ethan. Ethan looked blankly upon the surface of the table, his face as emotionless as stone.

"This boy shall one day prove to be the very undoing of Ash Ketchum. There is much hate and ambition within him. He will become a valuable asset to us. That is why I have brought him here," Apothes spoke.

"We don't have time to dilly-daddle and train a young child! We need immediate action to accomplish our plans! Now!" a senior Rocket Executive slammed his fist on the table. He then soon drew back in fear, as Apothes shot him a deathly glare with eyes that changed with violent speed between a fiery light blue and a menacingly dark red.

"During the time it has taken me to bring him here, I have taught him to master many of the dark powers I had bestowed upon him years ago through my former puppet, Julius. His power has grown at an exception rate, indeed. I bid you, for your own sake, do _not _underestimate him," Apothes warned.

The formerly cynical executive gulped in fear, then composed himself as Silver turned to Apothes. "So, what do you intend to do next? Even after years of rebuilding and new recruitment, our organization is still a mere shadow of its former glory. Things won't just instantly improve for us just because you brought that one child."

"No. Of course, you are right," Apothes conceded with a dark chuckle, then walked over to the table. "First, we will need to spread fear among the greater populace, beginning here in Johto, then spreading across the entirety of the Kanto-Johto region. We must eventually force them all to submit to our will. First, however, we will need to eliminate those who would oppose us. But I must ask you to be patient, for now. I will make all clear to you, in due time."

During the five years since Team Rocket's defeat and Giovanni's death, the notorious organization found itself forced against a wall. The days immediately following the disaster saw Silver, the Rocket Executives and a heavily demoralized number of agents and grunts perpetually fleeing from the authorities who still hounded and pursued them. After finally arriving safe to their secret headquarters in Johto, they had fully committed themselves to restoring Team Rocket to its former glory and stopped at no measures, committing heinous acts such as kidnapping, blackmail, torturing and threatening people at knife and gunpoint to increase their ranks. People were forcibly conscripted with cold indifference, save for the elderly who were spared grim destinies due to their age. Even children and novice trainers were taken, and forced to undergo rigorous training which would turn them into obedient servants and agents of Team Rocket.

"We no longer have any of our Kanto fleets left; our Kanto headquarters and facilities have been destroyed by the authorities. I don't see just how we could ever contemplate a co-ordinated attack on any major city, let alone the entire region of Johto," a cynical executive said.

"Do you honestly believe that we will attain power by means of brute force?" Apothes mocked him. "No. We will seize power through means of espionage and…silent elimination."

"Please elaborate," Silver requested.

"As you know, there are many agents within our organization who have undergone specialized programs aimed at heightening specific skills: sabotage, espionage, assassination and the like. We need only use them to achieve our objectives. We do not need brute power and strength to assert dominance over these lands. We need only use _fear_."

"Fear?" asked another executive.

"Yes. By taking hold of people's hearts, we can rule over them without any need of expending our resources. With their fear overriding all other emotions within them, the people will see no choice other than to submit to our will. By blackmailing or assassinating the political figures of each city and region, we can take each city without even a fight."

"But that still leaves two main problems for us," a senior executive noted. "The Indigo Plateau, and…Ash Ketchum."

Apothes' body jerked slightly as his hands curled into a fist at the mention of that name. Then, coming up with a devilish idea, he smiled. "Leave that to me. I've been looking forward to my own revenge for several years. When the time comes, he will die, just like every oth-" he was cut off, as a searing pain suddenly erupted in his temple. Silver and the executives around him leaned forward or stood up off their seats in concern, as Apothes held his head tightly with his right hand. "This…is not…possible…" he said to himself under his breath, so that the others could not hear. Ethan simply looked on indifferently.

"_Dawn…where are you, my love_?" Apothes could hear another voice speaking longingly in his mind. The voice of Paul. Apothes could feel Paul's soul struggling to free itself from his iron grasp. Soon after bringing it under control, Apothes immediately suppressed the threatening presence, banishing it once again into its innermost chambers. He reassumed a composed stance, lowering his arm slowly to his side.

"Sir…are you alright?" an executive queried.

"Yes," Apothes confirmed, and then quickly walked out of the meeting room as the door swung open for him. "This meeting is over."

Ethan followed after his new master, eager to become reacquainted with the long-lost power he had craved for as long as he could remember.

* * *

><p><strong>(Two days later)<strong>

**(Ash's POV)**

As planned, Misty and I began our search from scratch in the surrounding areas of the Pokémon Center, which was now being rebuilt, after leaving Claire under the care of Mom and Dad in Pallet Town. The others were also searching in the areas they had agreed upon, so that we were covering close to the entirety of Kanto at the same time. After a fruitless hour of asking the locals for any clues, we returned to the source of the disaster.

"Okay, Mist, let's go over this again from the beginning, and travel on foot," I said, taking a few steps from the reconstruction site. "After Ethan escaped from the fire, and assuming he was still free to act of his own will, where would he run off to?"

"He would go off to…" Misty trailed off, looking around. She then froze stiff as she came face to face with none other than Viridian Forest. "You can't be serious, Ash…"

"You came to the conclusion yourself, didn't you, Mist?" I said, half-teasing her. "Viridian Forest it is."

"But…bu-bugs…" she trembled.

I sighed. "Mist, you're not ten years old anymore. You're now over thir-"

"Don't remind me of my age!" she shrieked.

"Well, we're going to have to go in there whether we like it or not, aren't we?" I broke it to her. Begrudgingly, she followed as I went on. "Y'know, I really hope that Claire doesn't take after your fear of bugs. It's bad enough that you're setting a bad example for her at dinnertime, when you basically avoid every single piece of carrot and pepper."

"I hate you, mister," she growled with a soft pinch on my arm.

"Okay, geez…"

"Pikapi!" Pikachu suddenly jolted towards some bushes after twitching his nose slightly. Marill bounded off after him, and Misty and I followed suit.

"What's up, Pikachu?" I asked after he disappeared into the bushes. Soon after, he came out with a piece of cloth in his paw.

"Hey! This is…" Misty said, taking up the cloth from Pikachu. "This is a torn-out piece of denim! I recognize the texture of it. It must have come from the lower leg of Ethan's jeans!"

"Well, we can be thankful that we've got something to work with, now," I said. "But how exactly this wasn't picked up by the search teams, I don't know."

"Wait, what the hell was _that_?" Misty tensed as the sound of a stick breaking came from a few feet away from us.

"Piiika…" Pikachu began charging up for an attack, wary of anything that could potentially leap out of the surrounding bushes. The snapping noise of the stick was followed by a continued rustling of bushes, before a figure came out of them, causing Pikachu to spin around.

"Huh? Mr. Ketchum? Is it really you?" said the woman who came out of the bush. She had the exact appearance of an Officer Jenny, but was instead dressed in civilian clothing.

"Y-yes, I'm Ash Ketchum," I stammered, "but who are…you?" For some strange reason, she seemed very familiar to me.

"Don't you remember me? You saved my life years ago on Cinnabar Island!" she smiled.

"Crystal?" I remembered, and she nodded. "It's good to see you! But…what are you doing here in Viridian, exactly?"

"A few months after you saved me and took me to the hospital, I got married to my fiancée, Jason Hart, and moved in with him here. He couldn't thank you in person for what you did for me, of course, but he's thankful nonetheless."

"Crystal Hart…sounds nice," Misty grinned, causing Crystal to blush and chuckle. "But what's with your outfit? Did you quit the force or something?"

"Yes, I did," Crystal confirmed. "I handed in my resignation after I married my husband, like I promised him. He's fairly protective of me, and I appreciate that, but he can sometimes overreact too much at times. It's not like my job involved constant danger!" she laughed.

"So what brings you out here into the forest, Crystal?" I asked.

"Well, I'm no longer in the force anymore, but that doesn't mean I can't do what's right," she answered. "You saved my life, Ash. The least I could do is try and help in locating your child. And besides, my family's taking care of my daughter and son, and I'm a housewife now, so I can conduct searches when I have time on my hands. I can lend you a hand."

"That's really considerate of you, Crystal. Thanks so much," Misty smiled.

"There's…something you need to know," Crystal said, drawing our attention. "On the night of the fire, I…I saw what happened."

"You _what_?" Misty and I both said in unison.

Crystal nodded, tensing her lower lip. "It was by chance, as well. You see, it was only because I heard the crying of my two-month-old baby girl that I rose up to see it. When I entered my baby's room, everything was completely normal. Then, seconds later, a light outside the window caught my attention from the corner of my eye. It suddenly became like a blazing blast of intense light, and then, everything became blacker than night. This darkness, it was…_unnatural_. It literally made the darkness of the night seem like daylight by comparison. I'd never seen anything like it before. What followed next is what truly scared me…" she lowered her gaze.

"…What happened, Crystal?" Misty implored her.

Crystal raised her head up to face her. "The darkness…it looked like it was wrapping itself around the Pokémon Center – just like tendrils which slowly wrapped around its oblivious target, before strangling it whole. But just when I thought it would do exactly that, the shadows disappeared altogether in an instant. And then…_fire_…"

"The fire?" I murmured.

"An explosion. I'd never seen anything like it. No such accident could ever occur in a Pokémon Center. It was just inconceivable. A few seconds after the shadows disappeared, an explosion engulfed one section of the building. It was amazing just to see that anyone had survived that. The Nurse Joy who was on duty at the time – my friend, Anne, whom I had known for years – still hasn't woken up from her coma in the hospital. It's been more than nine days. She must have had a tremendous amount of shock. I'm worried about her…"

Misty and I were silent for a time, empathizing with Crystal. The former officer then regained the determination in her eyes, speaking determinedly to us. "But there's more pressing matters at hand – let's go look for some more clues as to the location of your son."

"Right," Misty and I both nodded, and we continued our search alongside Crystal. Our hearts beating lively, we trudged continuously through the thick grass of the forest. We could only hope that the others would find more clues that would help us locate Ethan; for we knew that time was running short.

**(End of Chapter 2)**

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Sorry about the long wait, folks. I've just been buried by a lot of uni assessment tasks that all fell in the last few weeks, and I had been writing my Yugioh Abridged fic to temporarily get away from all the seriousness that'll soon follow in this story.

The next chapter will also take some time to finish, I'm afraid. Unlike Books I, II and III, which I had fully completed a plot for prior to actually writing, I have close to no details established yet regarding the middle section of this book. I hadn't even intended on Crystal making an appearance in this book, as it was a last-minute addition. So I'm going to take some time developing the plot before actually writing seriously, otherwise I could find myself getting into some random plot holes that could potentially cause some serious derailing in the story.

Please leave your reviews, and stay tuned for the next chapter. : )


	3. One Step Closer

**Chapter 3**

**One Step Closer**

**(In Pewter City)**

**(3****rd****-person narrative)**

"We've been looking for hours, Sab. We haven't found anything at all," Brock groaned, placing his hands on his sore knees while he took a break.

"We can't give up, Brock. We promised Misty and Ash that we'd help to find Ethan. We have to go on," his wife told him.

"Yeah, but you said it yourself; you couldn't sense him anywhere around these parts. Even the police and other authorities have been searching all over Kanto for what would probably be days, and had no luck. And besides, nobody could ever make it to Pewter City on foot in just a day's time and go completely unnoticed. It's physically impossible."

"It's not about any of us finding him directly, Brock. Remember that we're looking for _clues_ as to his whereabouts – information, rumors, anything."

"Yeah, I guess you're right about that, honey," Brock said, rising up and assuming a straightened posture again. "Let's keep at it."

"Haunter, haunt…" a mischievous Ghost Pokémon chuckled, shimmering into form directly in front of Brock, making his face go pale and blue.

"I…really…hate it…when you…do that…" Brock stammered, taking a moment before the color returned to his face.

"Hehehe…Hi, Haunter. Found anything?" Sabrina smiled at the ghost, who shook his head in disappointment.

"Don't worry, Haunter; it's much more difficult than that," Sabrina assured him, before turning to her husband. "By the way, Brock, there's something I should mention that we didn't talk about with all the others at Pallet Town."

"What is it?"

"We should go to Mt. Moon."

Brock's expression went blank. "…You serious?"

"Yeah. In order to make this search count, we've got to cover as much ground as possible. Also, if Ethan's kidnapper didn't take him to any city or town, one of the only places he could keep Ethan out of view is a cave."

"But we don't even have a torch or proper clothes to go exploring in a cave!" Brock stated.

"Brooock…" Sabrina teased him for his forgetfulness, placing her hand on her chin as she looked at him while swaying her head side to side.

"Oh, yeah…I forgot that you can teleport."

Sabrina grinned as she lay her hands on Brock, teleporting them back to the Pewter gym to collect the necessary equipment for their search.

* * *

><p><strong>(On Cinnabar Island)<strong>

"Y'know, I don't really like being here all that much. It brings back bad memories," Gary said with reluctance.

"Why's that?" Tracey asked as the two of them walked along the beach.

"You remember, don't you? The fire at the lab? The Officer Jenny whom Ashy-boy saved and probably had a thing for?"

"Gary, for the last time, I'm pretty sure that Ash doesn't have a 'thing' for her. Nor Claire, the Nurse Joy in the Indigo Plateau, either," Tracey said with a sigh.

"You kidding me? You _do _realize that he named his daughter after her, right? You don't exactly need any more proof than _that_!" Gary laughed.

"She's the one who saved Pikachu, Gary. That doesn't mean-"

"Ok, _ok_!" Gary threw his hands up in the air in exasperation. "Geez, Trace, you can be a major complainer sometimes! Let's just get back to searching, now." They soon entered the outdoor market stalls when suddenly, a squealing group of young women came rushing over to them.

"Oh, great…you _should've _brought a pair of sunglasses," Tracey groaned and slumped his shoulders.

"Sunglasses wouldn't help much either, Trace. After all, I'm Gary Oak," he smirked.

A lengthy period of weaving and squeezing through the boisterous crowd soon followed for Tracey and Gary, the latter making an effort to hold up his right hand in the air so that the frenzied fan girls could see that he was married – although it hardly helped. At last, after managing to lose their followers – or, more specifically, _Gary's _followers – the two of them were able to continue their search.

* * *

><p><strong>(Meanwhile, at Pallet Town, Delia's house)<strong>

"Do you think they'll…find him?" Daisy asked Delia. They were seated in the living room while having some tea, along with Amanda and Melanie who also dropped by while the search went on. Daisy and Amanda's children were playing together along with Claire, who looked slightly discontent due to the fact that she was effectively babysitting them all. Chris was away, deciding that it was best that he covered the area that lay between Pallet Town and Viridian City.

"As much as I'd like to believe that, dear, I'm afraid my heart tells me otherwise," Delia looked down with a sigh. "Something tells me that things will be much more complicated than they seem to be right now."

"Even if they do find nothing, it won't be all doom and gloom," Amanda said. "After all, that would only mean that there's lesser places for us to search."

"That's right, Amanda," Delia agreed. "Remember, there's still the Johto region which we haven't looked into yet. In the time that Ethan's been missing, someone could've easily slipped him away there."

"But still, Ethan's just a child! He could be scared for his life right now!" Melanie worried.

"Don't worry too much, Mel. Ethan _is _missing, but that doesn't mean that things are hopeless for him. He can always come back: it runs in his family, doesn't it?" Daisy said, winking at Delia who before ever so slightly more relaxed due to that remark. For it was true: Chris had gone missing for what was over two decades before finally being freed from captivity and returning to her.

"But who on earth could ever want to kidnap Ethan? Furthermore, there hasn't been a word released about him; almost everyone who's seen the news report about the fire and his disappearance would instantly be able to identify him as Ash's child, wouldn't they?" Amanda questioned. "A normal person wouldn't just keep silent about the whole thing: they'd announce that he's being held for ransom, and the demanded price for his return would be simply massive."

"I don't know…I've got a bad feeling about all of this," Melanie sighed.

"We can only hope for the best," Daisy said, then gave a teasing smile. "And besides, when has Ash ever failed? You worry just a tad too much, Melanie. As usual."

"Hey! I do _not_!" Melanie complained at the older woman. "It's a legitimate concern, as well!"

"I'm sure she means well, dear. Don't get too worked up about it," Delia laughed as she assured Melanie.

"…You do this all the time, Dais," Melanie sighed grumpily, and Daisy chuckled softly.

* * *

><p><strong>(Three days later)<strong>

**(Ash's POV)**

We were all gathered again in the lounge of Professor Oak's lab, to discuss what each of us had found. As much as Misty and I were curious and eager to venture into Johto to investigate any chances of Ethan winding up there, we decided that it was best that we heard from everyone else before making any decisions.

"So, what has everyone found?" Professor Oak asked us all.

"Nothing," Brock sighed, slumping his shoulders. "Even after wandering through Mt. Moon, as well. I'm still drained from all the climbing and trudging…" Sabrina smiled, rubbing his back to comfort him.

"Bad news. We didn't find nothin' either," Meowth stated.

"There were no clues to be found along Route 1. It's certain that Ethan didn't track back after the fire," Dad said.

"If you think _your _search was fruitless, then it'll please you to know that me and Gary's 'search' mainly consisted of us trying to avoid his fangirls!" Tracey whined.

"Nggrr…" Amanda gave a cat-like growl in Gary's direction, jokingly glaring at him. Similar events concerning fangirls would happen whenever her husband even set one foot outside of Pallet Town.

"Serious? That's all the two of you did? Avoid Gary's fangirls?" Misty said in disappointment.

"Of course not!" Gary defended himself. "We were legitimately searching for clues! …though we were really unsuccessful…"

"Julia, what about you? Have you found anything?" I asked her.

"Nothing, I'm afraid," she shook her head.

"Well, I think it'd raise everyone's mood a little bit if I showed this," Misty took out the piece of denim and placed it on the table.

"What's that, sis?" Daisy asked, peering down at it.

"It's from the jeans that Ethan was wearing when he went missing. We found it in some bushes in Viridian Forest," Misty told her.

"If you found it so far out from the Pokémon Center, then that means…" Mom drifted off.

"He's alive. I'm sure of it," I said.

A few relieved sighs came from a few of the others, and a moment of brief silence ensued. Then, Sabrina started again. "If Ethan was never found in Pewter City, which would've been the next major city that he would've gone or had been taken to, then that means that our search should be conducted in the south-west sections of Kanto."

"But that means that we'd have to search every square inch of woodland and grass surrounding Viridian City, in a several-mile radius! We'll _never _find anything that way!" Misty cried, frustrated.

All of a sudden, an unexpected pang of psychic energy flowed through Sabrina, although she alone was aware of it. Her body and expression suddenly frozen stiff for a second, she drew the attention of all those around her. For some reason, although she herself didn't will it, her powers provided her with glimpses and flashes of events in the past, beginning from the day of Team Rocket's demise. She remembered chasing after the two helicopters which escaped the battle, how she ended Giovanni's life, and the one remaining helicopter fleeing.

Then, as soon as Misty placed a hand on her arm, Sabrina's visions ceased immediately, bringing her back to the real world. "Sabs…are you ok?" Misty asked.

"I'm…I'm fine, Mist," Sabrina panted. "I just…I think I just had a vision."

"A vision? A vision of what?" Jessie questioned.

"The day of Team Rocket's downfall and Giovanni's death. You remember what happened, right?" Sabrina turned to her. Delia, reminded of the painful loss of her former friend, looked down in sorrow.

"Yes. What about it?" James looked at Sabrina.

"We destroyed Giovanni's helicopter, but the other got away. You remember who was in it, yes?"

Julia thought back to the day where Giovanni called a meeting with his executives, herself and Silver. He had originally arranged for a jet to take them all to a secret underground facility in Rock Tunnel, but the plan had backfired and he, his secretary, Silver and the executives were forced to take the emergency helicopters instead. Giovanni had turned to fight, but the other helicopter had proceeded on with its course.

"Giovanni's secretary, his son, Silver, and the Rocket executives. They got away while we were dealing with him," Julia answered. "They were headed for the secret underground facility in Rock Tunnel. I remember that after mom's funeral, we used the information I provided in order to search for them at Rock Tunnel, but couldn't find them anywhere. Even I was unaware of the existence of the facility until Giovanni mentioned it himself."

"We have to go there. It's the only place we haven't looked. We have to find that facility," Sabrina said solemnly.

"_Rock Tunnel? _You can't be serious!" James shuddered, his teeth chattering with fear at the mention of the pitch-dark cave.

"But Sabrina, we tried looking before with the entire Kanto security force years ago, and found nothing! What makes you think we'll find anything _now_?" Jessie spoke out.

"_Trust me_, Jessie. This is…something that we have to do in order to find out the truth. I don't know how or why, but…we just have to do it. Something tells me that in order to find Ethan, regardless of whether he's being held there or not, we have to search there," Sabrina spoke.

After another brief silence, Misty placed her hand over Sabrina's warmly. "I'm with you, Sabs. You've always helped us, and I'll trust in you like always."

"Thank you, Misty," Sabrina smiled, and squeezed Misty's hand gently.

"It's decided, then. We go to Rock Tunnel. We can all leave right now," Julia declared.

"R-right…now?" James shuddered again, unable to control his anxiety at the slightest. He held Jessie's arm with both hands, in a fashion which a frightened child would grab onto their mother. His wife simply sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Julia's right. The sooner we go there, the sooner we can find Ethan," Sabrina nodded. "Everyone, take a few minutes to prepare yourselves for what's to come. Once all our preparations are made, I'll teleport us to Rock Tunnel."

Everyone had uneasy looks on their faces, knowing the dangers of Rock Tunnel and the miniscule chance of success of finding the secret facility.

A moment later, Jessie sighed. "Well, no-one ever said that it was going to be easy…"

* * *

><p><strong>(Meanwhile, at Team Rocket's secret Johto HQ)<strong>

**(3****rd****-person narrative)**

"It's been over a week since you took me under your wing, master. I want to know what you intend for me to accomplish," Ethan said to Apothes as they walked through a corridor towards Ethan's training chamber.

"Be patient, young one. All will be made clear in due time. But first, you must learn to harness the power necessary to fulfill the task I have for you," Apothes smirked. "There is much that you have forgotten over the years. Only after relearning all the powers of Aura that had been lost to you, will you be able to realize your own ambitions."

"How can you possibly know what _my_ ambitions are?" Ethan dismissed his statement.

"Young one, I am the very being who watched over your progress under Julius all those years ago, giving instructions to him so that he could develop your power to its fullest. It was that very day which I had looked forward to for so long. For once your potential power had been realized, I intended to dispose of Julius and install you in his place," Apothes explained, before his voice darkened into a scowl. "But my plan went awry; that despicable father of yours had to interfere with my goals, when my victory was so very near."

"And what of my mother? What did you intend to do with her?"

Apothes stopped in his tracks, looking back at Ethan over his shoulder before continuing on wordlessly. Ethan, deciding not to push on for an answer, followed after him. Although he had the utmost hatred for his father, it was not the same case for his mother. Nevertheless, he despised her also, but not to the extent that he hated Ash.

'_Who did he think he was, coming back for us after more than two years had passed? Why couldn't he just remain and die in isolation like he should have? Why did he deprive me of the power that I so rightfully deserved to claim? Why did mother ever return to him?' _Ethan thought.

"_That_, dear child," Apothes spoke back, "is completely up to you. You may deal with her in whatever way you please when the time comes. But as for your father…I will simply say that it has become a rather _personal _affair for me. You and I are but empty shells devoid of our formerly glorious power, due to his meddling ways. He will _suffer _for it, when the time comes."

Ethan smirked darkly at the thought. "Very well, then. What will my new training consist of?"

"Your training begins…" Apothes said as the two of them stopped in front of a rusting iron door which had been secured shut. "…here." He opened the great entrance with his telekinetic powers. The door creaked open, revealing a sandy, enclosed arena which contained several Pokémon held within sturdy metal cages. Flame torches illuminated the room in a haunting hue, the light reflecting from the eyes of the incensed Pokémon glaring angrily at the two of them.

"Wait. I recognize them. These are…" Ethan spoke, turning his head to the enslaved Pokémon one-by-one.

"Yes. They are," Apothes confirmed with a nod. "They are the Pokémon who once belonged to the trainer known as Paul, whom is my current host. They have proven to be most resilient to my corruption thus far. I had not expected them to last this long against my will, but no matter; they will eventually come to serve me, in time."

Paul's Torterra looked reflectively at Apothes, as if it could sense his noble master fighting from deep within to overcome the dreaded tyrant who was currently controlling him. The others, in particular Ursaring, simply growled and looked at their captor in disgust and hatred.

"What do you wish me to do, master?" Ethan turned to him.

"After watching over your progress on our way to this facility, I've decided that it was time for your first true test. You will defeat a Pokémon of my choosing, using only the powers of Aura I have taught you."

Ethan chuckled. "Very well, master. I am ready."

"Excellent," Apothes grinned. "Now…I will select…_Ursaring_." He merely turned his slightly to Ursaring's direction, and the iron cage opened. The lumbering beast angrily ran out of his cage and let out a savage roar which echoed throughout the chamber. "Just make sure, young Ethan, that he _suffers_. He's been the most troublesome out of their entire lot."

Ethan stepped forward, charging a dark ball of energy in his right hand. "It will be my pleasure, master…"

Ursaring bounded over to Ethan and Apothes in a fit of rage and such physical force, that his attack would have caused a normal man to freeze in terror. However, Ethan effortlessly dispatched him by unleashing the newly regained power he had learned, sending Ursaring flying against the bars of his cage. The impact left a deep and wide dent on the bars which creaked vehemently.

"Very impressive," Apothes chuckled. "I believe that you are now ready for a more serious test. It is now time for _Electivire _to take a stand."

The dark being telekinetically opened Electivire's cage, and the enraged Pokémon began charging up massive amounts of power for an all-out Thunder attack. Although he had the opportunity to immediately halt Electivire's attack, Ethan elected to wait so that he could test the true extent of his power. Once the electric waves came bounding towards him, Ethan held up an arm, creating a sizable tremor within the chamber along with dark mists of corruptive energy which immediately dissipated the attack. The once-confident Electivire felt a pang of fear and concern rush over him as he could feel tendrils of darkness swirling and wrapping themselves around his legs, moving rapidly up his body until he was rendered completely immobile. The tendrils then began to constrict themselves upon his body, driving him to roar with excruciating pain.

"That's enough for now, master. There is no more need for further exercises," Ethan declared, releasing Electivire who collapsed onto the ground.

"Oh? Why have you stopped, young one?" Apothes looked down at him with crossed arms.

"I have already demonstrated the extent of my power by incapacitating him. I do not wish to waste my time toying with Pokémon who cannot even defend themselves," Ethan answered. Although he tried to maintain such a pretense, Ethan himself knew deep down that the true reason for him ceasing his attack was due to the influence of his parents, in particular the kind-hearted Misty. Despite his lust for power and supremacy, Ethan still had within him some small sense of nobleness.

Sensing this from his behavior, Apothes grinned and turned away from the defeated Pokémon, and Ethan followed after him. Just before leaving the chamber, Apothes flung his hand slightly backward, sending Electivire flying back into his cage and sealing both him and Ursaring into their confines once more.

"Your parents still have a lingering influence on you, I see," Apothes said as he and Ethan walked through the shadowy trail of the corridor once again. "But no matter. Soon, you will forget everything you once knew of them. I see it in your eyes; the need for power, for glory. You _hunger _for it. You desire it, above all else. With time, you shall have all of that, young one. And much, much more…"

Ethan gave no reply, simply following after his master. A tiny part of him knew that he was doing the wrong thing; that he was betraying both his family and all of his friends, and that he must fight the darkness within him. But Ethan didn't care. There would be no obstacles between him and his quest for ultimate power. Not even his own family.

* * *

><p><strong>(Later, inside Rock Tunnel)<strong>

**(Ash's POV) **

About just over an hour had passed since Sabrina teleported us to the entrance of Rock Tunnel and we began our search. Like we had previously done, we left our children under the care of our parents at home. Claire was initially very stubborn in arguing with me and Misty that she wanted to come as well, but after we persuaded her about the dangers of this place, she sullenly agreed to stay with Mom and Dad. Tracey also stayed back to help Professor Oak around the lab, but Gary decided to stick around with us.

"Keep together, guys. There's no knowing what could come out at us in this cave," Sabrina spoke up from the head of the group. Everyone held a flashlight except for Brock, who was holding up a lantern behind Sabrina.

"James! For the love of _Mew_, keep that torch still! You're making a fool of yourself!" Jessie scolded him quietly, so as to not alert any wild Pokémon which could potentially be around them.

"But Jessie, don't you know about all the Zubats and Golbats in this cave? I don't want to be bat food!" James squealed, doing his best to keep his voice down.

"Shaddap, will ya, James? You're makin' me nervous as well!" Meowth punched him gently in the back.

Jessie sighed deeply. "What kind of man did I marry…?" She then chuckled after feeling's James' hand twitch in hers. "Just kidding, love."

"See anything up front, Sabs?" Misty asked, shining her torch in front of her.

"Nothing, Misty. Absolutely _nothing_," Sabrina sighed.

"Hey, what's that in that corner over there?" Brock turned his attention to a small gap in the side of the tunnel which was barely visible, and began to move towards.

"Brock, honey, I don't think you should-" Sabrina warned her husband, but it was too late. Brock had intimidated a group of Zubats with his approach, and they proceeded to fly madly around us, causing Misty to squeal in fear and hold tightly onto my arm, before moving en masse further down the cave.

"Are they…are…they…_gone_?" James chattered through his teeth.

Jessie laughed softly. "Yes, James. But aren't _you_, as the husband, supposed to protect _me_, your wife, in these kinds of circumstances? Whatever happened to that?"

James said nothing while Jessie patted and rubbed him on the back.

"Hey guys, I just wanna check this gap out. It might show us something, I think," Brock groaned as he started to squeeze himself through the narrow, yet barely wide-enough gap.

"Brock, get out of there – you're going to get stuck," Sabrina said in concern.

"No-not to worry!" Brock wheezed in insistence, still trying to get through. "This'll be just a piece of cake! Just a little more…" he continued to shuffle in between the two rock walls which were sandwiching him, before finally managing to get over to the other side. "_There_ we go!"

"Brock, there's nothing there. Just come back out. It's dangerous," Sabrina warned him, her tone growing ever more serious.

"Ok, Sabrina, you're right," Brock conceded. "It doesn't look like anything's here." He began to turn around carefully. "I'll just come back through, now, and- aaahh!" Brock cried as he suddenly disappeared from sight, falling through a hole which had been created by his weight against a weak foundation of ground.

"_Broock_!" Sabrina screamed, dropping her torch in panic and rushing against the wall and looking through the gap. She rushed back frantically, picked up her torch again and pointed it at the gap. "We _have _to help him! Come on!"

Misty and I were the first to pick up pace after Sabrina, working our way through the narrow gap as quickly as we could, soon followed by Jessie, James, Julia, Meowth and Gary.

"Brock! Answer me, _please_! Are you there?" Sabrina cried down the hole. "Brock!"

A moment of silence followed, causing us to grow more anxious by the second. Then, after what felt like a lifetime, Brock's voice responded back to us, giving us a cause for relief. "I'm okay, honey! I'm not hurt! But you've gotta come down and see this!"

"See _what_?" Sabrina called down to him.

"I don't know for sure! You've gotta see it for yourself! Come on down! Don't worry – it's just a short fall, so keep your feet pointing down, and you'll be fine!" Brock said in assurance. Sabrina quickly tucked herself into the small gap and fell through, and we could hear her feet making contact a second later with what sounded like not dirt, but a metallic floor.

"It's okay, guys, just do what Brock said!" Sabrina said, pointing her torch upwards so as to convince us. Misty and I nodded to each other, and I helped Misty get through the hole, while Sabrina secured her from beneath.

We entered one by one, until Meowth was the last one to jump through. Although he was confident of landing at first, the darkness and uncertainty made him extend the claws on his feet out of fear. James winced at the pain created as Meowth's claws came into contact with his arms, which had been readied to catch the cat Pokémon. Jessie once again nudged James back to his senses, but a teardrop or two was still visible on his eyeline, and his teeth were still clenched together in agony.

"Guys, check this out," Brock gestured for us to follow after him. "It looks like some sort of…doorlock."

He was right. A short walk away from the drop, there was a large iron door which was secured by a circular lock. Both the lock and the door showed signs of rusting: they had probably not been touched in years.

"Ash, give me a hand in trying to open this thing up," Brock called me, and I walked over to the door with him and we each put our hands firmly on the sides of the locking mechanism. "Ready?" he asked, and I nodded. "Three, two, one, _heave_!"

Brock and I began to heave with all our strength in trying to turn the lock clockwise, and it creaked and moved at a deathly slow speed. We took a moment to take a few breaths before starting the ordeal over again, and this time the lock gradually picked up pace until it made a loud thud and finally opened. Brock and I took deep breaths and placed our hands on our knees, utterly exhausted.

"Y'know, you could've just asked _me _to move it psychically. I could the whole time. The two of you _really_ should've said something," Sabrina joked, only receiving a whine from us in response.

"Let's just see what's in here," Julia said, squeezing past us carefully. "This just may be the very secret base that Giovanni mentioned all those years ago." Julia took the lead, and the rest of us carefully entered after her. There were several smashed crates and empty metal containers which littered the floor. The air was thick and not a single sound came from anywhere in the vicinity.

"Could this place have been…abandoned, or something?" Gary murmured from behind me.

"Looks like it. Giovanni said to us that he intended to use this place as a _temporary_ hideout until they could secure safe and undetected passage out of Kanto and into Team Rocket's Johto headquarters. From the looks of it, it's been _years _since they cleared this place out. There's no way that Ethan could've been brought here, where there's absolutely no supplies left," Julia said.

"Then there's nothing for it, then," Sabrina replied. "We continue our search in Johto."

**(End of Chapter 3)**

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Well, it's good to be back with writing more on this story. I've thought over a good deal of the plot's early stages now, so I think I've got a good idea of how I want this story to develop.

I became aware of the fact that I left out Cerulean Cave in the number of search spots, but decided not to include it, as I don't think that it was ever seen in the anime. Rock Tunnel itself wasn't mentioned as being included in the anime on Bulbapedia, so I had to come up with my own stuff for it as well.

I'm really quite unfamiliar with Johto, as it is one of the only regions for which I didn't watch a lot of the anime or played games: I haven't properly played a Pokémon game that takes place anywhere besides the Kanto and Hoenn regions, and I don't remember much at all about the Johto journeys in the anime. But with some reading into the region, I'm sure I can come up with something.

A few of you may have noticed already, but I'm now also working on another Pokeshipping story, called 'Letters'. Like the title suggests, this story is in a purely letter-exchange format between Ash and Misty. I've also begun a new fic for the KOTOR series, so I have to juggle my time between these three stories. I'm going to be working on the next chapter in the KOTOR fic, so please be patient for the next chapter of this book.

By all means, please leave your reviews. While I appreciate Favorites and Story Alerts, reviews (especially ones which contain suggestions and/or queries) mean so much more to me, as they enable me to tie up loose plotholes from the previous three books, or potentially come up with brand new plot features that I previously hadn't even thought of before.


	4. The Game Begins

**Chapter 4  
><strong>

**The Game Begins**

Sabrina teleported us to the middle of Viridian City, a short distance away from the Pokémon Center which was currently undergoing reconstruction. We decided that there was no time to lose in searching for Ethan now that the entire region of Kanto was ruled out as a possibility for locating him. Deciding that beginning another aimless search in Johto wouldn't get us far, we believed it to be best if we talked to the Nurse Joy who was on duty when the blaze started and Ethan was kidnapped.

"I don't know about this…" Sabrina shook her head in uncertainty as we started off to the hospital. "The Nurse Joy probably wouldn't have regained consciousness as of yet. Although Crystal said she's in a stable condition, we can't do anything if she doesn't respond."

"That's why we need your help, Sabrina," I looked over my shoulder. "If you can reach out to her in her mind and wake her from her current state, it just might work out."

"Well, alright, then," Sabrina shrugged. "I'll give it a try. But I'm just afraid that the trauma she suffered might not let me do that."

We entered the general hospital and went up to the reception desk, where a brown-haired woman was working at a computer. Her eyes slightly widened with surprise as she turned her head and saw me – I was widely known in both the Kanto and Johto regions, something which made me ever so slightly regret winning the title of Pokémon Master all those years ago. She spun her chair sideways to speak to me. "Oh! Hello, Mr. Ketchum. How may I help you?"

"Hi there," I replied. "We'd like to see the Nurse Joy who was present in the Pokémon Center when the fire happened. Would it be possible for us to see her? It's rather important."

"Of course, sir," the receptionist smiled and pointed to the corridor to her right which lead to all of the hospital rooms. "She's resting in room number 27, and currently has a visitor. But I'm afraid that…erm…"

"What is it?" Misty asked.

"She _still_ hasn't regained consciousness," the receptionist shook her head. "We're all very worried for her. The trauma must have been very great indeed, for her to be out for so long."

I let out a small sigh, also worried for the Nurse Joy. "Well, thank you for the information. We'll see how she's doing."

"Alright, Mr. Ketchum. Good day," she nodded and returned to her duties.

We walked to room 27 as she told us, and inside was Crystal, sitting by Nurse Joy's bedside and holding her hand. Nurse Joy was still breathing uneasily and her forehead was strewn with sweat, which Crystal periodically wiped away with a towel. Upon seeing us at the door, Crystal rose to her feet and invited us in with a hand gesture.

"How is she, Crystal?" Misty asked her in a soft voice.

"I'm…really worried for her," Crystal sighed. "She's been like this for so long. I don't know if she'll ever wake up. She's a childhood friend of mine, and…"

"It's ok, Crystal. I'll try to help her," Sabrina said and stepped forward after we exchanged looks.

"You will? But how?" Crystal nervously asked.

"I can use my psychic powers to tap into her mind and find the source of her anxiety. If I can just reach out to her, then maybe she'll wake up," Sabrina told her, sitting on the chair that was beside the bed. "I'll need your help, though."

"My help? But why?"

"If you give me your hand and focus with me, I can enable her to hear your voice," Sabrina explained. Crystal walked beside her and lent her a hand, which Sabrina placed over Nurse Joy's. She then placed her hand on top of Crystal's and continued. "Now, focus your mind. Try to reach out to her. I can create a channel between your minds so that your words will get to her."

Crystal swallowed nervously, having never undertaken such a task before. Nevertheless she complied, and closed her eyes and focused herself, whispering to her friend. "It's okay, Mia…it's me, Crystal. It's over now…you have nothing more to fear…"

A light blue hue surrounded Sabrina, Crystal and Nurse Joy as Sabrina moved her left hand and lay it upon Nurse Joy's forehead. Moments later, Sabrina's aura dissipated and Joy's tense expression softened, the darkness finally having been lifted from her mind. She took a quiet, sharp breath in and slowly opened her eyes to be met with the sight of Crystal smiling in sheer joy at her awakening.

"C…Crystal? Is…is that you?" Nurse Joy hoarsely whispered. "I…I feel so…weak…"

Crystal placed her hand gently on her shoulder, lowering her back onto her pillow from which she rose. "It's okay, Mia. I'm here. You've been through a lot. Just rest for now, and we'll call a doctor to see you."

"Who…who are…you?" Mia drearily looked at Sabrina.

"I'm Sabrina, the former leader of the Saffron City Gym. I managed to wake you just now," Sabrina said. "Look, we…we have a few questions we'd like to ask you, when you're properly recovered. Is that ok?"

"Of…of course," Mia spoke between pants. "Just…just give me some time."

"I'll take care of her," Crystal smiled at us, applying a fresh towel to Mia's forehead. "Meanwhile, can you guys go and call the doctor for me and wait in the foyer? Mia might get a little nervous with everyone watching."

"Sure thing," Misty agreed and turned to exit the room. "We'll do it right away. Come on, Ash," she pulled at my arm, causing me to slightly lose my balance as I wasn't expecting it.

Gary spoke to me as we all walked back down the hallway to the receptionist to tell her to inform the doctor that Mia had just woken. "Now remember, Ketchum, no more flirting with more Nurse Joys than necessary, ya got that?"

I gritted my teeth, clenching them together as I jokingly grunted at him. "Shut _up_, Gary…"

"Oh. Looks like someone's a player, huh?" Julia giggled from behind my back.

"Julia…" Misty closed her eyes and growled in the same way I did to Gary.

"Okay, okay, geez! You're such a hot-headed couple!" Julia sighed and rolled her eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>(Later)<strong>

"So, you're feeling better now?" I asked Mia at her hospital bed after a little over an hour had passed. Her pulse was back to normal, and her expression had much more life in it than previously. She nodded calmly, still taking care not to strain herself in any way. "Then…could you please tell us exactly what you saw that night? You see, my son went missing after the fire started in the Pokémon Center, and we haven't seen him since. We're confident that he's alive, but we have absolutely no definite clues as to who may have taken him."

"Well…" Mia looked down and let out a sigh. "I can't remember exactly what happened. It all occurred so quickly, and before I knew it, I fell unconscious to the ground. But I remember looking out the glass of the front entrance of the Center, when suddenly, a light shone from out of nowhere. It was the brightest I'd ever seen, and as soon as I covered my eyes, the light was gone, replaced by absolute darkness. It…it was darker than night itself." She stopped, her voice now shaking and a small tremble settling in her shoulders.

"Please, do go on," Misty implored, giving Mia a reassuring rub on her shoulder. Mia then swallowed nervously and nodded before continuing.

"Just when I moved to take a closer look out of curiosity, the shadowy mist disappeared in an instant. Then I heard a loud explosion coming from the room where our guest was sleeping. I rushed over there and saw that it was all on fire. I could just barely make out a tall, dark figure looking back at me with such a hateful look in his eyes. I was so shocked by his eyes that…my mind simply froze. I couldn't focus on any other part of him but his eyes. They…they weren't normal. They were glowing – brimming red. He snarled at me and raised his hand out at me. The flames suddenly intensified, and then…I remembered nothing else." Mia then started to cry into her hands. "I'm sorry, Mr. Ketchum…I should've taken better care of him…If I knew he was your son, then I would've…"

"It's all right, Mia," I sighed in disappointment, patting her on the back. "You did your best. Misty and I couldn't have asked for more."

"So you're sure that you couldn't see any of his other facial features? Nothing but his eyes, is that right?" Sabrina asked.

"Yes. I had a brief look at his whole face before I was frozen by fear from the look of his eyes. As the moon shone against it, it was…paler and more luminescent than the average face. He might… might have been wearing a mask, from what I saw," Mia thought hard, but not much more came of it. "I'm sorry, but that's all I can remember. I'm truly sorry for your loss."

"It's ok. We'll take care of things from here," Misty told her.

"You guys probably have a lot of things to do from here on," Crystal said to us. "I'll stay here and take care of Mia. Try searching in the Johto region, but make sure to plan things out carefully before you do: knowing Team Rocket, they probably have spies here and there in many of the cities. Their Kanto HQ and hideout have been deserted, but their Johto bases are probably intact."

I nodded. "You're right, Crystal. We should get going. Well, Mia, I hope everything goes well with your recovery. Thanks for the information you gave us."

Mia smiled delicately from her pillow. "You're welcome. Thank you for helping me wake up, Sabrina."

Sabrina blushed. "It was nothing. Take care, now."

As we walked out of the room, I didn't lift my gaze up from the floor for one moment. The nervousness was overwhelming; I couldn't tell whether my heart was pounding, or beating at all, as I brought myself to ponder on whether or not the event that Julius had spoken to me years ago was now finally happening.

'_Apothes has the power to possess mortals, by locking within them a small fraction of his corruptive power. They may seem like normal people at first, but given time, the effects may prove to be devastating…But you have little choice, other than to wait. Minions of Apothes act silently and discretely at first, rendering them nigh undetectable, until at last they gain the power and confidence to commit their terrible deeds on a much wider scale.'_

I shuddered at the thought that Apothes was finally back. I desperately hoped that it wasn't the case. For my entire life as a Pokémon trainer, I was embroiled in quest after quest, journey after journey to save the world from one evil after another. And for that whole time, all I wanted to do was to simply enjoy life and achieve my lifelong ambition of winning the title of Pokémon Master. All I wanted was…to be together with my Misty. I never realized that all those ordeals and hardships – seemingly insurmountable ones that felt as if they were truly grave threats to the entire world – were nothing but stepping stones and petty obstacles standing between me and my destiny as the Chosen One, selected by Arceus himself, to destroy the evil that was Apothes. Suddenly, it all seemed to be too much…

'_But you understand that, now,' _I heard Sabrina's voice in my head as my eyes darted to my left, where she was walking behind me. _'You understand that as the Chosen One, it is your destiny to stop Apothes once and for all. I know how you feel, Ash, but you can't let up now. Remember what I told you – you're not alone in this fight. We'll all be there to lend you a hand when you need it. We're all family, and we'll stick by you till the end.'_

'…_Thanks, Sabs,'_ I replied using my Aura powers. I could feel that Misty wanted to give me words of support as well, but decided not to: her feelings alone were enough to comfort me, and she knew this.

* * *

><p>"So it's off to Johto then, huh?" Brock said after we exited the hospital. "The place is huge, and cities like Goldenrod aren't exactly spots that I'd look forward to searching."<p>

"As fruitless it may turn out to be, we have to try," Julia replied. "We can't just sit here in Kanto and pull through on wishes and hopes."

"Then let's go now! What's the waiting for? Just zap us over there, Sab!" Gary said with confidence.

"Gary, as much as I'd also like to go there asap, we can't just decide out of the blue to go there without coming up with some kind of plan. We're all exhausted from days of searching, as well. Misty and I want to find him more than anything, but we know it's just not possible to begin a search without planning things out in advance," I told him.

"You're right, Ash. We should go home for now and rest for just a day or two. Let's go back to Pallet and pick up Claire," Misty agreed, the fatigue evident in her voice.

"We should meet back up at the lab in two days to discuss where we'll be searching in Johto," Julia said. "I'm sure we can come up with something. And Ash?"

"Yeah?"

"You should call Lance at the Indigo Plateau. He's heavily involved with things in the Johto region, so he should be able to give you some information and advice."

"Good idea, Julia," I nodded. "We'll give him a call when we get back home."

Sabrina sighed. "Well, I guess it's zapping time again. Where to, first?"

Misty smiled. "That's ok, Sabs. We'll just take our flying Pokémon home. You must be tired after today."

"I'll get back to Pallet on my gramps' Dragonite," Gary said, holding his Pokébelt. "Teleporting kinda makes me a little sick, to be honest."

James drooped his shoulders. "Oh…we don't have any flying Pokémon…Could we get a lift, perhaps?"

Sabrina chuckled. "Of course. Come around, and I'll teleport you guys home."

"Bye, guys," Misty turned and smiled as I released Charizard from his Pokéball, and Gary released Dragonite. We all waved goodbye to each other and went our own ways, Gary flying with us to Pallet Town while the others teleported to James's mansion.

"Mist, I've been thinking…" I said after a few minutes of silent flight, gently holding her arm while she sat in front of me. "Maybe it'd be best if you…stay at home with Claire, or stay with Mom and Dad while we search for Ethan in Johto."

"What? How could you say that, Ash?" Misty winced in objection to the idea. "I'm not going to sit around and do nothing while my son's in danger!"

"Please, Mist. I'm worried about you, as well as our baby. I can't help but feel as if we'll be watched by Team Rocket, even as we search for them ourselves. I don't want to take the risk," I insisted, squeezing her hand.

"But I…but I want to…" Misty exhaled, looking down in dismay. "All right, Ash. I'll stay behind. For you and our baby."

"I know how you feel, Mist. I know you'll get nervous just waiting at home for news from us, but trust me – we'll find him. We'll find him if it's the last thing we do," I vowed.

"I trust you, Ash. Just make sure he comes home safe. I miss him so much…" Misty wept, and I felt a teardrop fall onto my hand. I fondled her hand to console her, and saw Gary looking sympathetically at us from our left. He turned his gaze forward again, deciding not to disturb Misty in her grief.

* * *

><p><strong>(Meanwhile, at Team Rocket's Johto HQ)<strong>

**(3****rd****-person narrative)**

Apothes had called for a meeting with the Rocket leaders once again, as they all sat before him in the meeting room. Silver looked at him with a slight irritation in his gaze; it still irked him that he had to relinquish his rightful power to an individual who was not even truly affiliated with Team Rocket. Apothes himself could sense and feel this hatred towards him, and yet took gleeful pleasure in it. He was convinced that Silver's inner anger would serve him well in the future.

"So they have finally uncovered the abandoned base beneath Rock Tunnel…" one of the executives said, gathering his fingers together.

"Hmph. Took those fools long enough," scoffed another. "If they took _that _long to find that base, then they'll _never _discover our hideout here."

"How can you be so sure of that?" Silver barked. "Don't you know that because they've now searched every corner of Kanto, they can only come here to carry out their search? And besides, they have a _psychic _on their side! How do we know that some of our spies haven't been compromised already?"

"I have ensured that the spies we sent to Kanto to track their progress are of the highest state of mind, personally trained by me," Apothes said gruffly, his tone being evidence enough that he was growing tired of the executives' bickering amongst one another. "They are few in number, but their abilities are far beyond the measure of the average spies your organization had been using before my arrival. They have been trained to cloud their thoughts not only from others, but even themselves if the situation calls for it."

And he was right: Apothes's personally selected spies were nothing of the kind Team Rocket had ever trained and utilized. Their cold and unerring efficiency branded even the most elite of Rocket agents such as Miyamoto and Julia as mere amateurs. They had been trained to feel absolutely nothing but servitude; individuality, emotions and conscience were ideas completely alien to them, such was the extent of Apothes's training regimen.

Each of Apothes's elite spies were assigned a fake identity in their mission. These 'identities' were in fact not of the trivial sort such as the simple carrying of fake identification documents and cards, but rather the actual life of any poor soul who had the fatal misfortune of being deemed as an ideal 'pawn' in Apothes's plan. Through the elimination and disposal of such persons, the spies disguised themselves as common townsfolk who would hardly be noticed due to the unrecognized status of their victims: single, average in wealth, unemployed, and relatively unknown in society with a sparse number of contacts. Such seemingly unremarkable people would be the last ones that any psychic would heed any attention to, if any.

"If your spies are so efficient as you say, sir, then why not just order them to take care of Ketchum and his meddlesome friends?" an executive suggested. "With them gone, we can finally concentrate on our own plans, instead of having him constantly in the back of our minds."

"Hmph. Do you truly believe that _anyone _is capable of disposing of him directly?" Apothes mocked. "No. That is impossible even for me, due to my weakened state. In order to end him once and for all, we must first lure him out. We are already doing just that, by compelling him to venture into the Johto region. And this…" he evilly smirked, the shadows enveloping his face so that only his wicked smile was visible, "…is how we shall see to his undoing…"

* * *

><p>"Do you really think that your plan will work, master?" Ethan asked Apothes as they walked out of the room following the conclusion of the meeting. He had a cynical gaze aimed at Silver, who looked as discontent as ever with his current subordinate position and predicament. "Not only that, but why do you insist on letting those fools continue to exist? I can constantly see through their ulterior motives as clear as day. They are bound to turn on you sooner or later. Why not be rid of them and take full control of this organization? You already have enough loyal people as it is to do so by means of force."<p>

"Hahaha…still brash and calculating, I see," Apothes chuckled. "To answer your first question, I strongly believe that it will. I will wait until those fools have traveled deep into the heart of Johto before I spring the trap that I have set for them. They will see the need to split up in their search just like they did in Kanto, of that I am sure. We will then seize them, one by one. And as for the second…I choose to make the best use out of all my servants until they are no longer useful to me, or choose to make the foolish decision of turning against me, as many have tried and failed to do so. Those Rockets are still of use to me, so it is only logical that I expend them as I see fit. Of course, I must give them the illusion that they have power of their own in the short term, but with time, they will all come face to face with the truth. Or their death, whichever suits them."

"And does that include _me_, as well?" Ethan snidely puffed.

Apothes stopped in his tracks and slowly turned, looking at Ethan from the corner of his eye over his shoulder. "Why yes…"

"Then what is the point of me being your apprentice? Why should I follow you when I know you will just turn on me when you find another whom you deem worthy to take my place? What's to stop me from leaving you in order to gain power and influence in my own right?" Ethan questioned, folding his arms.

"Hehehe…you misunderstand, young Ethan," Apothes looked down at him. "There's absolutely nothing to stop you from taking whatever course of action you wish. Even if I _do _find another who has the potential to take your place, I shall not protect him, nor you for that matter. I believe you humans have a saying that states…what was it now…'survival of the fittest'?"

"What of it?"

"This is precisely that. If I _do _find another suitable apprentice whom I believe is worthy of my teachings, I shall teach him, that is true. However, I will not do anything to protect him from you, if you deem him to be a threat. In doing so, I am always left with a most able apprentice who perpetually grows in both power and cunning. It has always been so, and it is also why Julius had been my apprentice for millennia: he eliminated any and all threats to him without mercy or second thought, until his demise at the hands of your father. Now then, have I indulged all of your questions? For your training will soon resume, and I must warn you that it will be…substantially greater in difficulty from here onwards."

Ethan smirked darkly, his mind now bent on nothing more than enhancing his power. "…Bring it on…"

* * *

><p><strong>(Seafoam Islands)<strong>

**(Ash's POV)**

After a long day of trudging through Rock Tunnel to find Team rocket's secret hideout, staying at Viridian City to talk to Mia, and later undertaking a long flight back home, Misty and I were exhausted beyond measure. Claire's energetic insistence that we immediately go to Johto to look for her brother after we came back to Mom and Dad's house to pick her up gave us a smile on our lips due to her cute enthusiasm, but we knew that we had to go home. Sometime after having dinner and letting Claire go off and play with Pikachu and Marill, Misty and I collapsed together onto the sofa, overcome by fatigue.

"You called Lance, right?" Misty whispered to me as she lay her head back against my chest.

"Yeah," I replied. "He said that he'll send a team to clear out the base at Rock Tunnel, and that he'll contact the Johto HQ and relay the message. He'll tell us if he gets reports of any strange activity over there."

"Do you really think we can find Ethan in Johto? There's so many places to look…such a huge place to search for _anything_, let alone a son who could be kept hidden in a place where we'd never dream of finding him…"

"Mist, we've been through so much, and faced so many trials together. How could you even doubt it?" I put on a smile to convince her, but in truth, I couldn't even convince myself.

"Ash, I _know _you're trying to comfort me in my distress, and I appreciate that, but we've got to face reality now," she insisted. "What will we do if we never find him in Johto? What then?"

"Mist, I…" I trailed off, unable to find words to answer her. I embraced her tightly, kissing her gently beside her mouth. "Mist…no matter how long, or _what _it takes, I swear to you that I will find him. Please…be patient with me."

A long silence followed as we both reflected on the time that we spent apart from each other during's Misty's captivity in Julius's former lair. What was two years at that time felt like an eternity; we had both lost our other half after the boat disaster, and words couldn't describe the sorrow we felt every passing moment of our lives until we were finally reunited. And still, that paled in comparison to the time that Mom had lost Dad for: over twenty years. The fact that Mom was finally rewarded for her undying love and devotion to Dad, through his return, gave us a newfound hope in our hearts.

Misty murmured, a tear trickling down her face as she threw her arms around me. "I…I know you will, Ash…Just…just bring him home…"

Looking across the night sky to the waxing moon, we prayed with our hearts that we'd find Ethan soon. That we could all just laugh happily after finding him, and pretend that it was all just a bad dream. But I couldn't shrug off a doubtful feeling I had that festered in the back of my mind, no matter how hard I tried.

The thought that we could lose everything we held dear.

**(End of Chapter 4)**

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Well, things are finally going to get a real move-on from this point. The next chapter will be substantially different from what I've written so far in this series, and perhaps even darker than the latter parts of Book II, so be prepared :D .

I'm now going to work on the next chapter of my KOTOR fic, so please be patient for the next chapter in this book. I'm also itching to start a new fanfic for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, as well as one on Napoleon under the Horatio Hornblower fic section, but ideally I want to get this story as well as my KOTOR fic over with before starting on something else.


	5. Trapped

**Chapter 5**

**Trapped**

As agreed, we all met back in the lounge of Professor Oak's Lab two days later, ready and eager to start our search in Johto. Misty sat beside me on the couch with a rather disappointed expression due to the fact that she had to stay behind for the safety of our unborn baby while Daisy had an arm around her to console her.

"Don't be so down, sis," Daisy said to Misty who was looking sullenly at Claire and the other children playing quietly on the floor with some of our Pokémon. "It's not like they'll be gone for that long, right? Just hang in there for a few days; a few weeks at most." Daisy looked up and smiled at Julia. "Isn't that right?"

"As much as it pains me to say it, Daisy, it won't be that simple," Julia shook her head in response while she leaned against the arm of the sofa on the side where Jessie was seated. "Kanto was much simpler to search due to the maximum distance Ethan could have travelled after the fire, but Johto's a different story. It's been several days since he disappeared, and he could very well be anywhere. We're going to have to search far and wide in the _entire _Johto area."

"I was afraid you might say that," Misty sighed and looked down, nervously clasping her hands. "I just…_really _wish that I could come with you guys. Ethan's my son, and I don't want to just sit around here idly while we still haven't found him."

"Don't worry, Misty – we'll do everything we can to find him as quickly as possible. I promise," Sabrina insisted, but it did little to allay Misty's worries.

"Let's talk about the search now, then," Jessie said. "As we all know, Johto is a _huge _place. There's just so many major cities and towns, that we wouldn't be able to cover them as fast as we'd like. But we can't just split up and each take on one city; it's far too dangerous, with the number of Rocket agents that may be prowling around anonymously."

"You're right about that, sis," Julia agreed. "The best thing for us to do would be to go there at least in pairs for safety. We should all start from a city or town on the east side of Johto and gradually move on westwards and rendezvous at Olivine City."

"So how will you guys split up?" Amanda asked after taking a sip of tea.

"We should all go to New Bark Town for starters. Professor Elm might have seen something or he might have some useful information, hopefully," Brock suggested. "But how would we split up?"

"You and I can teleport northward to Blackthorn City, Brock," Sabrina said. "We should ask Clair if she knows anything that'll help us."

"I'll head straight to Mahogany Town with Jessie," Julia volunteered. "The two of us, as well as James and Meowth, know of the whereabouts of the Rocket Base there. We'll try to get as much information as possible without drawing attention to ourselves. Meanwhile, James and Meowth should take a more southerly route and see if you can find anything there."

"Ehh…all da water vapor from the south sea's gonna get to my fur," Meowth sighed in reluctant agreement while James nodded.

"All right, then what about me and Ashy-boy?" Gary asked.

"The two of you can head straight on to Cherrygrove City and work your way westward from there, heading southward to Azelea Town while James and Meowth head to Violet City," Jessie suggested. "That should allow us to cover all possible locations where Ethan might be. Once we've finished searching our respective routes, we should be able to have a thorough search together in Olivine, and then Goldenrod City, seeing as it's the biggest place to search."

"Trace, why aren't _you _doing anything?" Daisy poked him on the arm in irritation.

"Me? Well, I…erm…" Tracey chuckled, rubbing the back of his head.

"Personally, I think it's best if Trace stays behind," Gary said. "After all, gramps is busy, and we need someone who we can contact regularly and tell about our progress." He then smirked. "Not that we're mocking your abilities or anything, Trace."

"Ah, yeah, that should be alright," Tracey snickered.

"You're such a scaredy-cat, honey," Daisy rolled her eyes.

"Well, I could always use help around the lab," Professor Oak laughed.

"I don't know, Ash, dear…I have a bad feeling about this, for some reason," Mom looked down in anxiety.

"Why's that, mom?" I asked.

"I feel the same, son," Dad added. "As much as I acknowledge the fact that you'll have a better chance of finding him quickly if you all split up into pairs, it seems extremely dangerous for you to do so. The coast may seem clear and things may seem safe and all so long as you don't notice any activity from Team Rocket, but that's exactly the problem; if you all go there, they'll probably be watching you discretely. All of you. You could search for weeks and not find anything if they're monitoring your movements closely."

"You…may be right about that," Misty sighed. "It might have been like that during our Kanto search, as well. To make matters worse, you may just be walking into a trap if you decide to go to Johto. Team Rocket may have lost all influence over Kanto, but they'd still be strong and active over there."

"I know that that may very well be how it turns out, Misty," Sabrina insisted, "but we have to at least _try_. We can't just sit here fearing for our own safety while Ethan remains in danger."

"Sabs…" Misty exhaled. Deep inside, she knew Sabrina was right, but she didn't have the heart to give consent for us all to go there, knowingly putting our own lives in danger to rescue Ethan.

"Misty, dear, don't worry about them; I'm sure they'll be able to handle themselves while they're gone," Mom assured Misty. "Meanwhile, you should stay here with us until the others return from Johto. Just to be safe."

Misty nodded. "Okay, mom. That seems like the best thing to do."

"We should all get ready to depart for Johto first thing in the morning tomorrow," Julia said. "We're going to have to spend a day or so in each city we'll be searching, as well as traveling manually from city to city, so make sure to bring a reasonable amount of luggage."

"Couldn't Sabs just zap us from place to place?" Meowth questioned.

"I'm not an express taxi service, Meowth," Sabrina chuckled as she rolled her eyes. "Besides, zapping into Johto without going through border authorization isn't exactly what I'd call the right thing to do. Plus we need to have a _thorough _search of the region; that means covering as much ground as we can manually. We _should _be able to use our flying Pokémon to travel more quickly, of course."

"Gary and I can lend you guys some of our flying Pokémon. It should be fine that way," I said.

"Sounds good," Jessie laughed and winked. "After all, you can't expect a girl to walk that whole distance, can you?"

"You should take a decent number of Pokémon with you, son," Dad advised me. "It would be better for your own protection should things go sour. _All_ of you should."

"Oh. That reminds me," James groaned. "I'm not exactly well-equipped in terms of Pokémon. "Growlie has to stay at home to look after my parents, which just basically leaves me with Weezing and…" he swallowed nervously. "Well, let's just say that the other two are more likely to attack _me _than any other…"

"Heh. I'm quite short on Pokémon, too. You don't see _me _complaining though, do you?" Jessie mocked.

"Nah, don't worry about that," Gary flapped his hand back and forth. "You can borrow some of mine. Besides, Ashy-boy can't exactly let go of too many of _his _Pokémon, seeing as…well…he really doesn't have that many, to be honest."

"Nrrgh…" I jokingly grunted while everyone else restrained their own laughter.

"Julia, that reminds me," Jessie turned to her. "You…never really used Pokémon in battle before, have you? How will you defend yourself if Team Rocket finds us?"

"I've gotten this far without any Pokémon, haven't I?" Julia grinned. "Don't worry – I can handle myself."

"It's better to be safe than sorry," Dad shook his head. "You _need _to take some Pokémon. At least take my Alakazam with you. I've trained most of my Pokémon to be able to fight independently, so you don't need to worry too much about giving them orders."

"Ok, then. Thanks very much," Julia smiled at him in gratitude.

"Wow. Looks like you still have a lot to learn, Ash," Misty said mockingly.

"Hey, isn't it enough that I won at the Kanto Indigo Plateau when I was 18?" I chuckled, defending myself.

"Umm…Ash, didn't your dad win the titles of Kanto, Johto _and _Hoenn by around your age?" Tracey asked, doing little to help the situation.

"…Shut _up_, Tracey…" I mumbled through my teeth, keeping down a smile.

"Well, we all have different dreams, don't we?" Dad laughed, and Mom contained her laughter with a hand over her mouth. "But once again, good luck, son. Good luck to all of you. I hope you can find him and bring him back home without any troubles."

"Thanks, dad. We'll do our best," I firmly answered.

"Then it's settled," Sabrina said. "We'll meet up here again in the morning, and then we'll all go together to Johto. Let's hope we have safe journeys there."

Misty looked down and whispered to herself. "…Let's hope so…"

* * *

><p><strong>(Meanwhile, at Team Rocket HQ)<strong>

**(3****rd****-person narrative)**

"Dear child," Apothes smirked darkly down at Ethan after they had conducted another training session, "I believe that the time to spring our trap will soon be nigh."

"Why do you say that, master?" Ethan replied dully, his gaze hardly showing any genuine interest.

"My spies in Kanto have reported a short time ago that your father, mother and your other friends have gathered together in Pallet Town. No doubt they will soon come here looking for you, albeit to no avail," Apothes grinned with the slyness of a spider drawing its prey into a trap. "Do you wish to meet them?"

"No," Ethan turned his head in disinterest. "I don't want to face them. Just not yet. As much as I want to make my father pay for robbing me of my rightful power, now is not the time. Sabrina will undoubtedly be coming, as well. I wish to train further and increase my power tenfold, so that I may later overwhelm them all in a single breath…or leave them begging for their lives at my feet."

"Hmph. You are indeed wise for one who is your age, my student," Apothes chuckled and laid a hand on Ethan's head, then withdrew his arm.

"You asked me if I wanted to meet them," Ethan spoke. "That naturally means that you have a plan to capture them, yes?"

"Of course, of course," Apothes snickered and patted Ethan on the shoulder. "I intend to put into motion events which shall completely be out of their power to influence or control. They will have no safe haven to turn to once they set foot in Johto. I shall see to that."

"As you wish, master," Ethan said. "I don't care what you do with the others. Just…please ensure that my father is kept alive. I don't want him to have it that easy."

"Heheheh…You have been my apprentice for not even a month, and yet you possess a heart that holds a darkness that dwarfs that of Julius. Good, young one…You shall go far…" Julius cackled as he turned, leaving the training room with Ethan to join the Rocket Executives and Silver in the meeting room.

* * *

><p><strong>(Pallet Town)<strong>

**(Ash's POV)**

"Now Claire, I want you to take good care of your mom, as well as grandpa and grandma, ok?" I said to my daughter, squatting to her eye level. Jessie and James had left Demetry and Belle under the care of their parents, and Sabrina and Brock did the same at Pewter Gym.

"Ok…" Claire mumbled, clearly disappointed that she and Misty had to stay behind while the rest of us went to look for her brother. I smiled reassuringly at her, then stood back again and hung my gear over my back.

"Don't be too downhearted, dear. It'll probably only take a few days!" Mom said brightly so that Claire would stay optimistic.

"I hope you won't do anything stupid while you're over there, honey?" Amanda said teasingly to Gary who laughed as he kissed her. Their two young children, Sylvia and Jason, stood hugging on to Amanda's leg, unsure of what was going on.

"Sweetheart, you know I won't," he smirked, then look over his shoulder at me. "Though I probably can't say the same for Ashy-boy over here."

"Mommy, why does daddy have to go?" Sylvia, their four-year-old daughter looked up with innocent brown eyes.

"He's going with everyone else to find Ethan, my sweethearts," Amanda crouched down and said to her and Jason. "But don't worry; he'll be back soon. Your daddy's always been one to run ahead of time."

"Remember, all of you, that it's absolutely important that you call either myself or Lance at the Indigo Plateau in case you run into any trouble," Professor Oak said. "If I am not available to take your call, then Tracey will be."

"That's good to know," Gary jokingly smirked, and Tracey gave an unconfident laugh.

I walked over to Misty, who maintained a sullen gaze looking downward. I held her hand and raised her chin gently up so that we were looking into each other's eyes, then spoke soothingly to her. "I promise I'll be back soon, Mist. I won't take long. We'll find him and bring him back home."

"Ash, I…want you to promise me something else," Misty said, placing her hand on my chest.

"What is it, honey?"

"I don't want you or anyone else to put their lives at unnecessary risk to find him. As much as this pains me to say it, if Ethan is lost, then…he's lost. I don't want to give up hope for finding him, but I don't want any of you to put yourselves deliberately in danger. Hopefully we'll find him one day, but for now…just keep safe," she said, resting her head against my shoulder as I comforted her.

"All right. I promise you, Mist," I said, caressing her cheek. We kissed each other lovingly, and Claire childishly whinged and turned away.

"Don't take two years to come back to me again, you hear me?" Misty grinned with a tear in her eye, tapping me on the nose.

"I won't," I smiled, kissed her again, then went over to my parents. "Well, I guess I'll see you in a few days. A week or two, maybe, depending on how long it takes."

"You don't have to worry, Ash," Daisy smiled. "I'll take good care of both Misty and Claire."

I beamed back. "Thanks a lot, Dais."

"Take care, son," Dad said to me. "I know you'll do just fine."

"Oh, Ash…" Mom cried emotionally, throwing her arms around me. "Bring him home safe…"

"I will, mom," I patted and rubbed her on the back. "I will."

"Are we all set to go?" Julia said, looking around at us.

"Just about. Yeah," Brock nodded.

"Then gather around, everybody, and I'll take us to the Kanto-Johto border," Sabrina said, and we walked over to her and placed our hands on hers. After bidding our final farewells to our family and friends who stayed behind, we were gone in a flash, standing outside the border patrol area along Route 27.

"Holy sh-!" a stunned border guard had a small bodily spasm at our sudden appearance. "How the hell did you people get-oh…Hi there, Mr. Ketchum," he regained his composure at last, having recognized me. "How did you get here like that, by the way?"

"Sorry, that was my bad," Sabrina grinned, and the guard nodded in understanding. Even though Sabrina was no longer an official gym leader, she was still afforded widespread recognition and fame as one of the most powerful psychics in Kanto and Johto, strong enough to contest Will of the Johto Elite Four. "Umm, we'd like to get through the border, if that's alright with you. We have our travel documents with us if you need them."

"Ah, you must be searching for…umm…_Ethan_, am I correct?" the guard noted, and I nodded. "Then feel free to come right through; I won't need to check your documents. Wouldn't want to keep you waiting while you're looking for your son, after all, Mr. Ketchum."

"Thanks a lot," I smiled as we went through the entrance gates. "Oh, by the way, have you or anyone else on duty come across any suspicious people around this area shortly after the fire at the Viridian City Pokémon Center? You see, we've already searched far and wide in Kanto and found nothing, so we have a strong feeling that Ethan is somewhere in Johto, along with the person who's taken him."

The guard frowned. "I'm sorry, sir. None of us have seen any people of the like. There's a strong possibility that they may have been traveling under the cover of night, as well. They could even have slipped through without us knowing anything about it."

"Don't worry; we've already told Lance at the Indigo Plateau about the situation," Brock assured the guard. "He'll be able to help us out if we need a hand while searching."

"That's good to hear," the guard nodded. "Well, good day to you all."

We thanked him as we entered into Johto, and then Sabrina quickly teleported us in front of Professor Elm's lab in New Bark Town so that we could begin the search as quickly as possible. Once we entered, we found him busy reading several texts; books surrounded him at the desk where he was also conducting Pokémon research on his computer. As usual, he was so immersed and preoccupied with his work that he hardly even noticed us: I had to clear my throat from right behind him in order to gain his attention.

"Oh! Sorry, I didn't notice you all there while I was busy with my research!" Professor Elm apologized with a laugh. "What brings you here?"

"Hehe…Hi, Professor Elm," I greeted him. "You've heard about what happened with Ethan, right?"

"Ah! Of course! It was such a tragic thing to occur, and I give you my condolences, Ash," he replied. "How is your wife doing?"

"Misty's fine, thanks for asking," I smiled. "She's staying with our daughter at my parents' house in Pallet Town until we return from our search."

Professor Elm's eyes expressed his bewilderment. "…Search?"

"Yes," Sabrina said. "After searching everywhere in Kanto and finding that Team Rocket's old hideout underneath Rock Tunnel has been abandoned, we think there's a good chance that they may be the ones who are holding Ethan captive somewhere in Johto. We'd appreciate it if you could help us in any way at all. Did you see any suspicious people around at night or in the early morning after the fire at Viridian City took place, by the way, professor?"

He shook his head in disappointment. "No, I'm afraid not. I'm sorry, but I saw absolutely nothing of the like. If the kidnappers really slipped through past this area without anyone detecting them, then they might be absolutely anywhere in Johto. Why, they might not even be _in _Johto anymore!"

I shuddered at the thought that the search might get a lot more complicated than it already had to be, then replied. "That's alright then, professor. We'll have a go at searching, starting from the nearby areas, and contact you if anything comes up."

"That would be for the best, Ash," Professor Elm nodded. "I'll be in my lab if you need to contact me at any time. Good luck with your search!"

He smiled as we departed, and we decided to split up to go to the cities we agreed upon in Professor Oak's Lab, Gary mumbling to himself as he followed behind me.

* * *

><p><strong>(Several hours later, in Goldenrod City)<strong>

**(3****rd**** person narrative)**

Jonathan Golding was the envy of many people in Goldenrod City: he had a highly successful career and much personal wealth as the head of the Goldenrod News Bulletin in the center of the city, was liked and admired by close to all of his staff, had a wonderful family of a wife and two children, and life couldn't possibly get any better or smoother for him.

But that was all about to change, as two knocks sounded from his office door.

"Yes, what is it? Come in, please," Golding said from his desk.

"Mister Golding, sir, we've just received a package from an anonymous walker-by at the front desk," the employee spoke while entering the room, holding a white paper package up in his right hand. "He said that he wished to remain anonymous, and that it was urgent and vital information regarding the kidnapping of Ash Ketchum's child last week. He left as soon as one of our staff got their hands on it, saying that it was for you, and you only."

"Is that right?" Golding's eyes shot up in surprise, and he extended his hand towards his employee. "Well, then, let me have a look at it. Thank you, Ross."

"No problem, sir," he nodded and approached, handing the package over. Once it was out of his hands, he promptly turned to leave and return to his own desk. "Good day."

"Now, what have we got here…" Golding murmured, removing the tape and unwrapping the package on his desk. After the paper wrapping was removed, he saw a single CD case and opened it, revealing a small note on the inside which accompanied the data disc. Growing in both nervousness and excitement, he opened up the note to read its contents:

* * *

><p><em>Dear Mr. Golding,<em>

_Please be aware of the fact that since the start of this very morning, you have been closely watched and followed. Do not try to make any sudden movements; if you do, we cannot guarantee your safety. Or your life. We have people watching you right now from afar who are ready to kill you without any second thought if you even appear to be acting contrastingly to our demands. _

_If you still do not believe us or believe us to be bluffing in this act, please consider the following: we know that your address is 12 Moreton Street, seven blocks from your workplace. We know that you have a wife, Annette Golding, and two children, Daniel and Teresa. Should you not comply with our instructions, none of you will live through this day. _

_Now that we have your undivided attention, our orders to you are the following:_

_After reading and memorizing these instructions we will provide you, you are to discard and destroy this note so that no evidence remains for its existence. Use the cigarette lighter you keep in the first drawer of your desk to burn the note, and then dispose of it by shredding and scattering it out your office window._

_Proceed immediately without delay to the broadcast room of your studio with the data disc we have provided you after finishing this note. Give it to your staff and arrange for its content to be broadcast all across the Johto region as your first breaking news story during your nightly news bulletin program. Ensure that the full content of the disc is played without any cuts, edits or interruptions. Once the tape has begun playing on the live broadcast, return immediately to your office and lock the door. One of our representatives will meet you to discuss your further instructions._

_Do not disappoint us._

* * *

><p>Golding's hands trembled and began to water with sweat which dampened the ink on the paper. His fear having made him subconsciously recall the important details of the letter word for word, he quickly took out his lighter and burned the paper while holding it out his window. His eyes wandered wildly around, trying to get a glimpse of the potential threats to his life, but to no avail. Trembling all over his body and shaking in unco-ordinated fashion, he lurched forward to his desk, grabbing the data disc and rushing to his door. He swung it open to see many employees walking to and fro with documents in their hands, although he was lucky none of them noticed him in his current state of distress.<p>

Calming himself down, he re-assumed a business-like posture and pose, walking normally to the broadcast studio where the people inside it were preparing for the 6pm news bulletin.

"Good evening, everyone," he said, keeping a facade of a smile on his face as he headed to the people behind the computers and cameras. "I've got a special data disc here – apparently, someone was kind enough to send us some files that are related to the incident where Ash Ketchum's child disappeared."

"Really, boss? That's quite a find," remarked a man who was adjusting the cameras. "It'd make headline news and send our ratings up the charts!"

"Hang on a second," a brunette woman with glasses behind the computers said. "Is that from the package that Ross brought up to your office a short while ago? The guy who brought that in was a shifty type, I'll tell you that. I'm having doubts as to whether that data is even reliable."

"Maybe, but what have we got to lose?" Golding grinned, a concealed bead of sweat falling down the side of his head. "Besides, I'm sure that Mr and Mrs Ketchum are frantically looking for their child as we speak! This could actually help them out."

"I…guess that's right, boss," the woman admitted. "Hand it here, please, and we'll make sure that it's mentioned first thing in the news."

"Very good, team," Golding said as he handed over the disc. He then turned back to return to his office. "I'll be in my office if anyone needs me."

"Sure thing, sir," the cameraman said, and the crew continued their preparations.

"…Thank heavens that's over," Golding sighed deeply as he turned the handle of his office door and entered, shutting it behind him. "Now, I just have to wait for this mysterious person to arrive, and -!"

* * *

><p><strong>(In Mahogany Town)<strong>

"Gah! Julia, I really need to take a breather or two!" Jessie groaned, clutching her sore knees with both hands. She and Julia had been searching for hours for any possible clues that would lead to Ethan's discovery, occasionally strolling close to the secret Rocket Base, and had barely taken any time to relax. "Julia, in a few hours it'll be dark – we should look for some place to spend the night."

"Not now, Jess," Julia said, readjusting her wide-brim hat and pulling Jessie's back so that it wouldn't fall off her head while she leaned forward. Their completely civilian-style clothing would make them seem like ordinary people wherever they may be. "We can still go on a bit further. We can always find a place to stay in another half-hour or so."

"Gaah…dammit, my knees are so sore," Jessie whined again, biting her teeth together as she brought herself back up.

"What's wrong with you, sis? You used to be so sharp! Though not as sharp as _me_, of course," Julia grinned.

"_You _try having to give birth to twins and looking after them as well as a husband who can't take care of _himself_ half the time!" Jessie joked back, and Julia laughed softly as they continued to walk down the streets. They soon stopped, however, as they saw a live news bulletin from the local tv shop.

"…tonight, we bring you this exclusive breaking story regarding the kidnapping of Ethan Ketchum last Wednesday," the anchor-woman said. "We have just received from an anonymous source some footage which is claimed to be vital in uncovering the truth about the disastrous fire at Viridian City's Pokémon Center. Please stand by."

The screen temporarily went blank for a split second, then was filled with the picture of what appeared to a distraught man in his early thirties, with an unshaven and messy appearance which was barely noticeable in the dark background of the almost lightless room he was in.

"My…my name is Thomas Grant," the man stammered nervously with his voice shaking, "and I have some important information I'd like to share regarding the Viridian City Pokémon Center fire last week. You see, I'm…I'm the one who…started that fire that night."

"…_Bull_…_shit_…" Julia whispered inwardly in anger, her fingers clenching into fists. "Just what does this guy thing he's doing?"

The man continued. "I was paid a…_generous _amount of money to start that fire with Ethan Ketchum inside. At that time, I was blinded by greed, but now that I see things clearly, I…I regret it entirely. And it absolutely disgusts me to think that I had agreed to do such a thing when the person who contacted me to carry out this deed was…Ash Ketchum himself."

Jessie's hand flew up to her lips. "_What? This is outrageous!"_

The man was now becoming an emotional wreck – or he was making himself seem like one. "When he contacted me, I couldn't believe that he wanted me to kill his own son. One moment I held the idea to be absolutely abhorrent, the next I was completely in it for the money. He told me that he, his wife, his parents and every one of his close family friends were sick and tired of seeing his son, and that he was nothing but a blight on their happiness. And without a moment's second thought, I…I agreed. I killed him."

He proceeded to show 'document evidence' of his alleged 'contact' with Ash, pulling out call records, handwritten notes and identification on his part, in an apparent attempt to eventually turn himself in to police. Jessie and Julia looked on in horror, unwilling to believe anything more the man said.

"The bastard didn't even say how exactly he and Ash even _knew _each other! He didn't even mention that Ethan's body was never found after the fire! How can he even claim that Ethan is dead? People couldn't _possibly_ take this guy seriously!" Julia panicked.

"This guy is just full of crap," Jessie shook her head. "We already _got _the truth from Mia – Crystal's friend and the Nurse Joy who was on duty that night. We need to get back to Kanto ASAP and expose the truth with their help."

"First thing's first," Julia reminded her with a firm hold on her shoulder. "We have to find Ash and Gary as soon as we can and regroup with everyone. Once we're all together again, we can decide on what to do next."

"Agreed," Jessie nodded, and the two of them darted away down the footpath to find a secure area where they could mount Ash's Pidgeot and Gary's Fearow and make all haste to find their friends.

* * *

><p><strong>(Goldenrod City news station)<strong>

"Mr. Golding! Mr. Golding! What the hell was _that_?" a staff member cried as a number of them stormed towards his office and started knocking on the door immediately after the news program went to a commercial break. "Mr. Golding, are you in there? Open up, please!"

No response came.

"Mr. Golding, sir, please open up!" another worker yelled, beating his right palm against the door while another tried unsuccessfully to open the door. "Mr. Golding, are you in there? Are you alright?"

No response.

"Someone open this door! It's urgent!" a female staff member cried, and the two men who were up against the door nodded at each other and kicked the door open in unison.

"Mr. Golding, we-" the cameraman who was in charge of the bulletin began to speak, but stopped the moment he saw the horrific sight which lay before their eyes. "…_Oh my God…"_

Inside, on the carpet of his extravagant office, Jonathan Golding lay dead on his stomach with a pool of blood around him, his lifeless eyes wide open and staring blankly at the ones who looked upon him in shock and horror.

**(End of Chapter 5)**

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Sorry if this chapter seemed a bit too extreme and 'Death Note'-ish, but this is pretty much how this book will continue to develop. I've been thinking myself about how I would advance this story's plot, as it is the most complicated of all my Chosen One books so far. Unlike Books I to III, in coming up with the plan document for this book, I knew precisely how it would both start and conclude, but the details in between were mostly blank or patchy at best. So I'm basically just making stuff up as I go along, which is not really my preferred style, but I'll get to the end eventually, nonetheless.

Please leave your reviews!


	6. Author's Note

**A/N:** Sorry to all of you readers who are followers of this series, but I'm going to have to take a bit of a break from this story for a while. Unlike the first three books for which the plot simply flowed smoothly with minimal indecision or problems on my part, this Book is entirely different in that respect. I've been thinking of numerous possible plotlines for this story, but just can't make solid decisions as to how it'll play out – if I think of one plot twist, then it leaves a major plothole or dilemma in some other development that I have to address. As I have mentioned in previous chapters, I know how this Book is intended to end – I'm just struggling on how I'm going to develop this story so that it gets to that point in the way that I want.

While most other fanfiction writers have written sagas which commonly end with a total of two or three linking stories, mine has a total of six books, and admittedly, my energy, drive and enthusiasm to write more in this series has been ailing since the middle of Book III due to its sheer intended length which I am constantly well aware of.

I have also realized that this series has been growing less and less popular among readers, in contrast to other authors' series such as TheFifthCharmedOne's 'In My Heart', nyislandersgirl's 'Double Trouble' and 'Here We Go Again', and Epicocity's 'The Chosen Trilogy', for which the number of reviews have grown either significantly or at least steadily with each sequel. Contrastingly, the number of hits and visitors to my Chosen One series has been more than halving with each subsequent Book, and some readers who had been regularly providing me much-valuable reviews in the past have disappeared altogether.

I have received many encouraging reviews in the past , namely from IvyBean, Lynn Sorcha, WhyIsAnimeAddicting, FanficFemale, Killer of Thy Cookies, Eevee5501892, icywarm, eclispe2025, Ahkalia, PeachDaisyAmy777, Hoenn Master, and pokemaster101, among many others, to whom I extend my deepest gratitude, but I feel that I have to give this story a temporary pause.

I had been considering the possibility of allowing another writer who has been a longtime follower of this series to take care of and develop it on a temporary basis if they consented to it, IvyBean being among the top of my potential candidates due to her writing style which I consider to be highly captivating and compelling. However, this series is something which is of great sentimental value to me, and I want to personally write it myself until it is finished. Therefore I'm going to put this story on hiatus at least until I finish writing my Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic fanfiction, 'Heart of a Padawan'.

I won't be writing more on this story for a while, but I will be working on plot details for it while I write my KOTOR fic. I really need a fresh change from writing my Chosen One saga, and I'm convinced that writing my KOTOR fic will enable me to rejuvenate and refresh myself so that I can get my enthusiasm for this fic back up again.

Until then, I ask that you remain patient for more from this series, and I thank you all again for all the support you have given me over the course of this saga.

Yours sincerely,

JL01


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